First Ambassadors’ Cricket Cup brings the joy of cricket to Washington
Thursday, 19 September 2013 00:00
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Ambassadors of eight cricketing nations come together to highlight diplomacy through cricket
Washington DC: The Sri Lankan community cricketers in the United States had a unique opportunity to play under the Sri Lanka flag on Saturday, 7 September, when the Embassy of Sri Lanka in Washington, DC participated in the first Ambassadors’ Cricket Cup, which was held at South Germantown Recreation Park, Maryland.
For the first time ever in Washington, DC cricket served as a tool of diplomacy, bringing together communities from eight different cricket-playing countries to enjoy the sport.
The lively cricket field exhibited the flags of eight cricketing nations flying over their respective tents, and supporters in colourful jerseys gathered for a day of cricket. The beating of drums, music, cheering crowds and the food elegantly created the festive atmosphere and encouraged the players to give their best performance. Ambassador Jaliya Wickramasuriya and Priyanga Wickramasuriya joined the Ambassadors of the eight participating nations to support their teams.
The Sri Lanka team, which comprised Embassy staff members and Sri Lankan-American cricketers, played with similar teams representing Australia, Bangladesh, India, New Zealand, South Africa, the West Indies and the United Kingdom.
The tournament consisted of six matches of seven overs and the final match of 10 overs. Sri Lanka beat the West Indies in the quarterfinals, but lost to Bangladesh in a close game right up to a nail biting finish. The Bangladesh team emerged the champions of the first Ambassadors’ Cricket Cup, beating Australia in the final.
The Embassy of New Zealand and the Embassy of Trinidad & Tobago (on behalf of the West Indies) jointly organised the tournament with the assistance of other Embassies of cricket-playing nations. The cup for the winning team was presented at a dinner reception held at the New Zealand Embassy.
Dr. Neil Parsan, Ambassador of Trinidad and Tobago to the United States, delivered a splendid speech elaborating on the idea behind the tournament. He emphasised that the tournament provided an excellent opportunity for the embassy staff members and the community to have fun with their families and make new friends. He described how common interests like cricket can bring people together and enhance relations. Ambassador Jaliya Wickramasuriya congratulated the winning team and thanked Ambassador Mike Moore of New Zealand and Ambassador Neil Parsan for taking the initiative to organise the tournament.
Ambassador Wickramasuriya noted that cricket, being the world’s second most popular sport and venerated by millions of people in five continents, is a valuable instrument of diplomacy.
“Today we witnessed the power of cricket diplomacy, as diplomats and community members from eight nations joined hands to organise an extremely successful event in a country where the game is hardly heard of. I sincerely hope this event will help increase awareness about this great game in the US,” he said.
He also thanked the Sri Lankan-American cricketers for participating in the tournament and wished them better luck at next year’s Cricket Cup.
With the tremendous success of the first event, the hosting Embassies plan to hold the tournament every year. The Embassy of Bangladesh is confirmed to be the primary host of next year’s tournament.
