Expat sport gets some local fillip in Hong Kong
MIRPUR: India’s comprehensive win in the Asia Cup has been termed special by skipper MS Dhoni. The manner in which the win was achieved does go a long way in establishing them as one of the favourites for the World Twenty20 title.
They won all the five matches that they played in the tournament. Most were comprehensive and impressive as they came on wickets that offered more help to the pacers and little to the spinners, which has been India’s strength.
Dhoni relied on his pacers heavily through the two-week tournament and used young pace options Jasprit Bumrah and Hardik Pandya smartly.
As usual, spinner R Ashwin came into play, but the conditions did not quite help him produce the individual brilliance we are accustomed to. Dhoni too did not use him in attacking plays. The one time Ashwin was used to open the bowling attack was in the final, the only time a dry wicket was on offer.
Otherwise, it was the pacers that were relied upon to get the breakthroughs. NAGPUR: It’s like the viral phenomenon, ‘The Dress’. For some it’s black and blue, for others white and gold. Hong Kong cricket team, who play Zimbabwe in their ICC World T20 Qualifier opener on Tuesday, could be a bunch of mercenaries, a group seeking the remarkable, or a sign of what the future beholds.
Even in the sometimes odd world of Associate members of the International Cricket Council, Hong Kong is a paradox. A 44-yearold former Australia international, a half-new Zealander, and a bunch of Pakistan-origin players, among them a 16-year-old Waqaz Khan, certainly make an eclectic mix. Some may even deride them as opportunists, but it isn’t really black and white, or blue.
“My grandmother was Chinese my great grandfather Against Sri Lanka, at home in early February, Dhoni had used Ashwin and the other spinners in attacking plays with the conditions suited for such a tactic.
In the Asia Cup, prior to Sunday, Ashwin was used more to keep runs down than to effect wickets. Other than Ashwin, India has kept faith in Ravindra Jadeja in the spin department, and part-timers Yuvraj Singh and Suresh Raina. If Ashwin was used sparingly, the other spinners remained fillers, only used to plug overs before the seamers came back. In favourable conditions, Dhoni has not hesitated in using Yuvraj in attacking plays with the ball. Here, though, the conditions did not favour such thinking.
The ploy, though, is likely to be seen in the World T20, when spinfriendly wickets might come cée was born in Hong Kong, my child was born in Hong Kong, I feel very much part of the country,” said Ryan Campbell, who had played for Australia. “Most of the players we have are either back into play. While Ashwin has displayed the ability to adjust his game seamlessly across conditions, the same cannot be said of other bowlers, whose primary job in the team is to reduce the flow of runs.
For them, a good run with the ball in the Asia Cup was essential. And bowling the kind of overs they would need to in the World T20 would have helped them. Besides, the skipper too would have been able to correctly utilise them during the marquee event. That luxury, though, was not accorded to Dhoni during the Asia Cup and it will be an aspect he will look to correct in the two warm-up games India play before their first game in Nagpur against New Zealand on March 12. Dhoni, however, said he was confident that the conditions did not leave the spinners under-prepared.
“I feel India is the only cricketing nation that has persisted with a combination of three pacers and two spinners. We are a side that has more spinners in the side than most other teams. Quality matters and we have good quality bowlers. Even in this tournament, with little deviation on offer, they have still played well and I am sure they will play an important role in the World T20,” Dhoni said. of their life in Hong Kong. They may not have a Chinese last name, but they’ve learned everything in Hong Kong. We are very much part of the country, and are very proud of it ” but is the captain of England. How does he feel? You know, the world is changing. No one lives in the same place for ever anymore. Hong Kong is a very transient city. Nearly a million expats live in Hong Kong. We are very multicultural.”
MULTI-CULTURAL HK
The last statement has a profound meaning. After all who really is a true ‘Hong Konger’? It’s a loaded question with no correct answers.
As Campbell says, the multicultural Hong Kong has moved beyond these binary considerations. There are caveats though. Campbell and a few such as Babar Hayat are not Hong Kong citizens, but residents. But then, Hong Kong, a special administrative region of China governed under the principle of ‘one country, two systems’ is unique.
Having said that, cricket in Hong Kong, as 21-year-old Mark Chapman agrees remains very
“Obviously the local community hasn’t been exposed to cricket much. But we are working on that with school programmes,” said Chapman, whose mother is Chinese. “In recent times, people have seen it only as an expat sport. But if you look at the last few years, we have three or four full Chinese teams playing in domestic cricket.”
The expansion of cricket in Hong Kong depends on their performance in international tournaments such as this, and on Chapman, for with his close Chinese background, the youngster, who plays domestic circuit in his fatherland, New Zealand, could well be the pioneer the city needs. That and Olympics. “If cricket is an Olympic sport, a lot will change, You know, the Chinese system is focused on winning medals in Olympics.” Hong Kong fields a separate Olympic contingent but it is by all means