The Indoor Cricket Masters World Series is coming up in Sri Lanka and the South African Indoor Cricket Federation has launched a campaign to get all its teams there.
South Africa (28 May 2024) — South African Indoor Cricket teams have qualified for the Masters World Series in Sri Lanka, which will take place from September 28th to October 5th, 2024. The participating teams include the 30 women’s team and the 35s, 40s, 45s, and 50s-over men’s teams.
The South African Indoor Cricket Federation will be sending one team for each category, which is about 80 players. This includes umpires and local officials. The federation has launched a funding campaign to help get as many players over as possible.
Janna Bedford-Owen, from the women’s team, reached out to share the campaign in the hope that South Africans would back the teams.
“Unfortunately, with most amateur sports, we are player/self-funded, which creates challenges to join in events such as the upcoming Masters World Cup set in Sri Lanka over Sept 2024. We would love nothing more than to continue our participation and possibly defend our World Champions title for a third time (a genuine point of pride with the squad and a truly humbling experience for the players). While we will continue our fundraising efforts, we are also reaching out to potential sponsors for assistance in reaching our goals. Every little bit is appreciated” – Janna Bedford-Owen
Ray Lourens, the SAICF Chairman, has issued an official sponsorship challenge to South African supporters to get backing for the teams to be sent to Sri Lanka to represent South Africa.
“This is a great opportunity for our players to prove their abilities and skill at an international level.
Unfortunately, this great opportunity comes with its fair share of challenges, like the cost of making it possible to attend such a prestigious event.The teams are challenging local business and firms to show their strengths by asking them to help us to make an international statement by making this tournament possible for them as these opportunities do not come around often.” – Ray Lourens
They estimate that it will cost around R50,000 per player to participate. This amount includes flights, visas, transport costs, accommodation, kit, and game fees.
Countries participating so far:
- South Africa
- Australia
- New Zealand
- England
- UAE
- Sri-Lanka
- India
- Singapore
- Indonesia
- USA (not confirmed yet)
“In 2019 we made history again by having 2 SA teams in the final, thus demonstrating the depth of talent within the indoor community.” – Janna Bedford-Owen
For those wanting to support and sponsor the teams, you can contact Ray via email here.