The Taiwan Dragons want to take Taiwanese cricket global and are pushing ahead — including with the 50-ball tournament that ended yesterday — despite a lack of funding and poor weather.
The Taiwan Stars won the 50-ball final at the Yingfeng Cricket Ground in Taipei’s Songshan District, with 83 from 10 five-ball overs giving them enough for a six-run win over the Pakistan Cricket Club (PCCT).
Several hours of play were lost last month due to poor weather.
Photo courtesy of Taiwan Cricket
Dragons president Marlan Samarasinghe said that the tournament was intended to gauge the viability of Taiwan-based players to compete in a new world club cricket series, with India-based organizers planning a week-long tournament in Malaysia next year.
They have to overcome several obstacles to make that happen, he said.
“We need help, from the government or sponsors, to take the best players to Malaysia,” Samarasinghe said. “Right now there is nothing, so any help to cover accommodation and travel would be great.”
“Also, we want more cricket played by Taiwanese, so the Dragons want to go into schools and teach kids this game,” he added.
The Dragons’ 50-ball tournament began on Nov. 6, with the Hsinchu Titans, PCCT, the Taipei Scorpions and the Dragons in Group A, while the CCU Vikings, the Hsinchu Proteas, the Taiwan Stars and the Taipei Indians made up Group B.
The finals for the short-form tournament were scheduled for Nov. 13 and 14, but were pushed back twice with rain in Taipei dictating proceedings.
The PCCT topped Group A and advanced to yesterday’s semi-finals along with the Dragons, while from Group B, the Stars and the Taipei Indians made the final four.
At a separate tournament on Saturday, the Vikings, the Game Swingers and the Taichung Warriors contested a Vikings-organized tri-series at National Chung Cheng University in Chiayi County, with the Warriors marching through the day undefeated.
The Chiayi-based Game Swingers opened the day with an 83-run thrashing of the hosts, amassing 210 from their 15 overs.
Nitish Nair (83 not out), Swaraj Shevgan (63) and Siddhesh Pilankar (52 not out) did the damage with the bat, setting a target that was never threatened.
The Warriors brought the Game Swingers back to Earth with a nine-wicket trouncing and backed their victory up with a 37-run win over the Vikings, putting themselves in the final with the Game Swingers.
Set 109 to win from 12 overs, the Warriors got there with seven wickets and two overs to spare.
Zeeshan Khurram top scored with 52 not out.
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