The SAARC Twenty20 Cup

Cricket is one of the legacies the British left to Indians and the whole South Asian subcontinent. Since then, the people in this region have been addicted to cricket. Life comes to a standstill all over South Asia for a big cricket game.  People simply eat, drink and sleep cricket.  South Asia is now the powerhouse of cricket, both in terms of cricketing success and the sheer number of people who follow it.  South Asia is home to perhaps the most successful and exciting cricket teams in the world; India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. Bangladesh was a late edition to the cricketing elite, but they are proving their worth among cricket’s strongest and most powerful teams.  Among the associate and affiliate nations Afghanistan is the strongest having qualified for both the World Cup and Twenty20 world cup.  Nepal, Bhutan and Maldives maybe the weakest among these giants of cricket, but they have  proved their worth in  in regional tournaments.

The  SAARC Twenty20 cup targeted at  Under 25 teams from the 8 countries  aims to build on the interest for the game, and achieve greater contact between the SAARC Member States through sports. The youth play an important role in fostering SAARC ideals, and this event will provide a unique opportunity for them to come together and share their experiences and hopes for the future growth of the region through sports.

The tournament is an initiative of the Government of Maldives to coincide with the 17th SAARC Summit to be held in Addu atoll, Maldives in November. The aim is to bring together SAARC youth in a festive and competitive environment that will contribute to their development as well as enhance people-to-people contact in the region. The tournament  provides the opportunity for smaller cricketing nations such as the Maldives and Bhutan to play with their more experienced counterparts from countries such as India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka, contributing to a great cricketing exposure which will help them in their development. The tournament is  a sideline activity of SAARC Summit  and is scheduled to take place from  30 Oct. to 8 November.  The tournament will be played at the purpose built stadium on the beautiful island of Fuvahmulah in the South Province.