Can the 2023 Ashes breath new life into Hungarian cricket?
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The Hungarian national cricket team is nearing a year without a competitive match. So with little prospect of any action any time soon, could a huge Ashes series in England this summer be the kind of event to possibly breathe new life into Hungarian cricket?
Can the Ashes reignite interest in cricket?
The 2023 Ashes are almost upon us. And it’s fair to say it’s one of the most eagerly anticipated clashes between the two nations in nearly 20 years.
A little over 12 months ago, it was expected that Australia would turn up in England, and just steamroller the hosts when the series got under way in 2023. Both the bookmakers and English cricket fans had written England off as no hopes. Fast forward 12 months, and Australia are still The Ashes betting favorites, but only just. In the latest cricket betting odds, Australia are +100 to win, with England at +150. A drawn series is +550.
Those odds were closer to -200 on a win for Australia after they demolished England 4-0 in the 2021/22 Ashes series. That change in the betting shows just how far this England team has come in the last year.
So what has changed?
Say hello to our new boss! 👋@Bazmccullum | #EnglandCricket pic.twitter.com/T6CiX5OgE5
— England Cricket (@englandcricket) May 12, 2022
The introduction of Brendon McCullum as England’s new head coach, and his appointment of Ben Stokes as Test match captain. That’s what has changed. Under the leadership of the duo, the same English players have won 11 of their 13 Test matches played. And what’s more, they’ve played a brand of cricket that richly entertains.
England are now all out attacking. Gone are the bad old days of batters waiting for the bad ball, and letting the good ones go past. England now looks to score from every ball and put the opposition under pressure.
And it’s the same with the ball in hand. England’s bowlers are encouraged to go for wickets, and if it costs runs, then so be it. In the past, if a bowler couldn’t keep the run rate down, that guy was out of the team. This is no longer the case.
When James Anderson takes the field against South Africa, he will be the first specialist fast bowler over the age of 40 to play a Test in more than 60 years.
And he’s still world class.#AndersonAt40 pic.twitter.com/7JdrgN4DNE
— Wisden (@WisdenCricket) July 30, 2022
So how can this help Hungarian cricket?
If this series plays out in the fashion people are anticipating it will, it could make headline news around the world. Anybody semi-interested in cricket will hear about it, and that could be the catalyst to get cricketers in Hungary, and even around the rest of Europe, dusting off their pads, and picking up their bats again.
It could also be the catalyst to get the Hungarian Cricket Association (HCA) to get the national team to play again. Since the team was excluded from the ICC T20 International Championship in 2021, they’ve hardly played any matches. Ironically, they were excluded for not playing enough in the first place. So the exclusion seems to have had the reverse effect.
But if the Ashes can generate interest across the globe, it may be the shove in the back that cricket associations need to get the game going again in developing nations. So let’s hope the players of both England and Australia can deliver the goods on the pitch and get the ball rolling.
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1 Comment
Write to the Marylebone Cricket Club, at Lords Cricket Ground, St Johns Wood London NW8 – 8QN – address it to the President – and put your case – your position that we HUNGARY want BETTER communication, a feeling of INCLUSION in the UK and European Cricket scene – and NEED there HELP, advise and ASSISTANCE.
I spent (2) two summers at Lords, with Middlesex County Cricket Club, and yearly, went to Corfu to play a match or (2) two, in the main square of Corfu, with the English Cricket Society, that was all to do with promotion – fostering building relationships through the game of cricket – and a bit of a holiday.
I know of numbers of Clubs in the London area that would delight a match against a Hungarian Cricket team.
Southgate, Hampstead, Dulwich, Finchley – I played on all these grounds, – just (4) four off the top of my head, that have beautiful grounds and settings – that the locals British public would support.
Write to there Club Presidents or Secretary’s.
SELL yourselves – Hungarian Cricket – put your name out-there and would not SURPRISE me if a London Club or two – HUGH numbers of Cheap flights from the UK to Budapest, showed interest to come and play a match in Budapest.
Cricket -you want to GROW it in Hungary – lisen to people like me that have EXPERIENCE.
The young and interested – you will loose them to the GAME – if you don’t play games, and give them MOTIVATION , introducing new ideas into there INTEREST – of the game of cricket.
REMEMBER – the more time you PLAY the Game, the BETTER you will be.
Write LETTERS – act independently – you NEED all the HELP in the world to GROW cricket in Hungary and my recommendations – they WILL bring more POSITIVES than Negatives – in your VISION(s) – the building for the FUTURE Cricket in Hungary.
Good Luck-my email for further assistance I may or may not lend, living in District V- gary.j.a.booth-hansen1950@ gmail.com