Cricket becoming big in US. What will it take?

[ivanotter]

All,

Watching NZ vs SA. Good stuff, although 5-day test cricket is pushing it.

I think I remember thar Royal Challengers Bangalore (IPL team) has an American batting coach.

At an interview he said that he could easily see cricket becoming a big hit in the US, at least T20 cricket.

Can that happen at all?

What would it take after all?

Ivan

[TheNordicBrit]

Well historically it was big there, the first international game was between British North America and the USA, Washington played Cricket and, until baseball appeared, cricket was a huge thing there.

Then in the 1870's it made a comeback but the British denied them access to playing cricket with anyone in the Empire and so it died out again.

I don't know about now or the near future, but if you had Britain be a little less protectionist about cricket then we could see it, maybe not boom, but certainly become a big sport in the USA once again.

[ivanotter]

Amazing,

Didn't know that!

[Landshark]

Conversely Baseball was very popular in Britain from the 1870's to WW2, (Derby County FC's stadium was the Baseball Ground from 1895 to 1997). In fact the UK beat the US in the first World Cup of Baseball in 1938.

[ivanotter]

Thanks people,

I am becoming very clever on sports now. Didn't know that either. OK, my favourite action sport is chess, maybe that's why

Ivan

[Landshark]

Coincidentally and rather surprisingly while looking into this I found that Britain's newest baseball team is Newton Aycliffe Spartans who play about ten miles from my home town.

Newton Aycliffe Spartans (http://www.newtonaycliffespartans.co.uk/)