Dreux Cricket Club’s journey in the 2022 European Cricket League has come to an end. But this Eure-et-Loir club, which had a batter score the tournament’s first century in 2019, has left its mark on the 2022 edition as well. The tournament favorites hail from countries where cricket is most established: England, Scotland, Ireland, whose champion clubs were absent in 2019, and the Netherlands, whose champion, VOC Rotterdam, is the reigning title holder. Behind them, perhaps the Germans, whose champion was the runner-up in 2019, and the Danes, semi-finalists.
So when the French champions crushed the English club Tunbridge Wells, beating them in just 3.1 overs out of 10, it was an earthquake! First, Dreux bowled out the English for a modest score of 86, then the French surpassed that score in 19 balls out of the 60 allotted, without losing a single batter. Hamza Nizar scored 51 runs in just 12 balls. Well done, gentlemen…
One wonders how much this Cricket Champions League will help popularize European cricket. Let’s hope Dreux’s feat will get people talking about French cricket across the Channel. Yet, apart from Asian cricket sites and YouTube, the only English-language online reference to the tournament that’s easily found is on the Kent Cricket website. However, it’s just an announcement that Tunbridge Wells would participate in the tournament, not news about the English defeat. There is, however, an article on the excellent site CricketEurope, which I recommend: here
The road is long for those who, like the author of this article, want French cricket to be known and respected beyond its borders. The involvement of 29 countries in the tournament organized by Daniel Weston can only contribute to the notoriety of European cricket, even if progress will be gradual.
It should also give clubs valuable experience in technical and strategic areas to help them progress. The chance to play on quality pitches. To give them that clever mix of confidence and coolness, that famous mental strength that is essential at the highest level. Third after the round robin, Dreux managed to gain momentum in the playoffs to reach the final against the inevitable English. The only club to have beaten them, Dreux had reasons to believe, but in the end, chasing 129, they fell short with 101 runs.
Group B kicks off this Monday, June 14, with clubs from Norway, Guernsey, Northern Ireland, Croatia, Bulgaria, and Hungary. The Irish will be the favorites, but will any club be inspired by the example of our French side to topple them?
Find out more in English: [
1 A century, or 100 runs scored by a player, which is particularly difficult in a T10 match.
2 An over consists of 6 legitimate balls. Each faulty delivery must be redone, and a point is awarded to the batting team.
3 In T10, an innings consists of 10 overs, 60 balls.
4 A batter can score 4 or 6 runs in a single hit by sending the ball out of the field.
5 The top level of English cricket is organized by regions or ‘counties’. See the previous article.
James Worstead
