POSTED: Tuesday July 7th 2009
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Vanuatu elevated to ICC Associate membership

Decision taken at ICC annual conference after recent on-field successes against Fiji

 

Impressive levels of junior participation among girls and boys; U/19s have reached ICC U/19 CWC Qualifier

 

ICC President David Morgan: “Vanuatu has clearly demonstrated cricket has made the leap from simply existing to becoming firmly established, organized and growing”

 

Vanuatu has been elevated to Associate membership of the International Cricket Council.

 

The decision was confirmed at the recent ICC annual conference at Lord’s following recommendations from the ICC’s Associate and Affiliate membership and the ICC Board.

 

The island nation from the ICC’s East-Asia Pacific (EAP) region had applied for Associate status in 2008 and was required then to meet the outstanding playing standard criterion for elevation.

 

That standard involved securing at least one victory and being highly competitive in another fixture against a top 20 Associate team and Vanuatu fulfilled that requirement by beating Fiji twice in a three-match series in May this year.

 

By becoming an Associate Member, Vanuatu will qualify for additional funding which will allow it to make a strong sport even stronger within its own constituency.

 

Despite having a limited land base, Vanuatu has 18 grounds that have been used in competition in the past 12 months and also boasts substantial under-age competition with 113 junior boys and 44 junior girls’ teams.

 

And last month the Vanuatu Under-19 men’s team beat its Associate equivalents from Fiji and Japan to reach the global qualifying event for next year’s ICC U/19 Cricket World Cup.

 

The elevation of Vanuatu lifts it to the second tier of ICC membership and it becomes the 35th Associate Member of the game’s global governing body.  The ICC also has 10 Full Members and now 59 Affiliates.

 

ICC President David Morgan said: “I am delighted to welcome Vanuatu to Associate membership of the ICC.

 

“It has clearly demonstrated that within its constituency cricket has made the leap from simply existing to becoming firmly established, organized and growing.

 

“The hard work of those involved with Vanuatu Cricket has already borne fruit with significant levels of participation at junior level among girls and boys and impressive performances by the senior men’s team, illustrated by its victories over Fiji in May.

 

“Vanuatu’s elevation to Associate membership will provide it with the opportunity to benefit from increased funding and that will allow it expand its activities and develop the game still further.

 

“I know that with its ongoing strategic plan, continued development is something Vanuatu Cricket is keen to ensure happens, and I look forward to following the game’s continuing advancement there over the coming years.”

 

Vanuatu’s application for Associate membership was supported by the EAP’s two ICC Full Members, Australia and New Zealand, and it becomes the fourth Associate Member in the region alongside Fiji, Japan and Papua New Guinea.

 

Criteria for the various levels of ICC Membership can be found at http://icc-cricket.yahoo.net/rules_and_regulations.php

 

-ENDS-

 

 

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Keywords · Vanuatu cricket · International Cricket Council · cricket

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Name: Sami Ul Hasan
Organization: ICC
Email:
Phone: +971 4 368 8349

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