Cricket in Morocco

Cricket in Morocco
CountryMorocco
National team(s)Morocco
International competitions

Cricket is a minor sport in Morocco. Cricket was first introduced to the country in 1991, and the Royal Moroccan Cricket Federation became an affiliate member of the International Cricket Council (ICC) in 1999 but in 2019 they were expelled from ICC owing to breach in membership criteria.[1]

History

The Moroccan national team was made by former Test Cricketers Surinder and Mohinder Amarnath in 2002 in a project that was funded by businessman Abdul Rahman Bukhatir.[2] They were on a 3-year contract which ended well as they successfully managed to coach and create a well trained national team for Morocco.

Surinder Amarnath was involved in the development of the team and was responsible for coaching and training the boys who later formed the first ever Moroccan national team. The team has been active since at least 2004, and made its international debut in 2006, at the 2006 Africa Division Three tournament.[3] Although Morocco falls into the ICC Africa development region, the national federation also has links with European countries – a development team from the Gibraltar Cricket Association toured in 2003,[4] and England's Marylebone Cricket Club toured the following year.[5]

In 2016, it was reported that there were twelve active clubs, spread across six cities (Bouznika, Casablanca, Khemisset, Rabat, Salé, and Tangier).[6]

Cricketing events in Morocco

In the early 2000s, an Emirati businessman, Abdul Rahman Bukhatir also financed the construction of a US$25-million international cricket venue in Tangier, known as the National Cricket Stadium. Bukhatir's aim was to promote cricket in the Arab world. In August 2002, Pakistan, South Africa, and Sri Lanka played a One Day International (ODI) series at the ground, which was known as the Morocco Cup.[1] The team played at international level until 2012 under South African coach Riaz Richards.[2]

References

  1. ^ a b (16 May 2002). "Morocco to host international cricket in August" – The Himalayan Times. Retrieved 22 February 2016.
  2. ^ a b "Stumped - Can Moroccan cricket ever be revived? - BBC Sounds". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 8 July 2019.
  3. ^ Other matches played by Morocco Archived 9 July 2017 at the Wayback Machine – CricketArchive. Retrieved 22 February 2016.
  4. ^ "GCA Development XI in Tangier" Archived 6 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine – ICC Europe. Retrieved 22 February 2016.
  5. ^ Marylebone Cricket Club in Gibraltar and Morocco 2004 – CricketArchive. Retrieved 22 February 2016.
  6. ^ Bertus de Jong (18 February 2016). "Qui Vive look to bring Morocco to the Netherlands" – CricketEurope Netherlands. Retrieved 22 February 2016.