Jersey to host Cricket World Cup qualifier

Jersey to host Cricket World Cup qualifier

Cricket squads and supporters from five nations are set to touch down next September for the delayed second round of ICC Challenge League B qualifiers – bringing to an end a near-two-year break for the Island’s top players.

Neil MacRae’s men will face Bermuda, Hong Kong, Italy, Kenya and Uganda in the round-robin 50-over event, which acts as a feeder tournament for the 2023 Cricket World Cup. Current leaders Uganda were originally due to play hosts, but will now stage the third round instead in February 2022.

Jersey suffered three defeats from five in the opening round of games in Oman last year.

‘We need to use home advantage, get some wins on the board and get us back into international cricket after a two-year layoff,’ said head coach MacRae. ‘But first of all we need to get match sharp and back up to ICC cricket level, rather than a good club cricket level.

‘Home advantage will be massive. We want it to be a flagship event for Jersey.’

MacRae added that he would like to re-establish links with county cricket clubs for warm-up friendlies, including Hampshire, Kent and Sussex, although he admitted it will all depend on how quickly Jersey recovers from a second wave of Covid-19 cases.

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