Grand Prairie to Host World Cup Cricket Matches, Building On Its American Cricket Epicenter Rep

The sport of cricket began in England in the 16th century. Now it’s making a major North Texas move. Professional cricket teams and fans from around the globe will rally at the grand prairie Cricket Stadium in June to take part in the International Cricket Club Men’s T20 World Cup. It remains to be seen if some more traditional Mom, Baseball, and Apple Pie loving local sports fans will embrace cricket, but the international popularity of the game (cricket is the second most watched sport in the world behind only soccer) and North Texas’ diverse populace all but assures this World Cup will be a significant attraction.

The Men’s T20 World Cup is being co-hosted by the West Indies and the United States from June 1 to 29, with the opening match of the tournament set to take place at Grand Prairie Cricket Stadium. Other matches will fan out across America in spots from Lauderhill, Florida to Long Island, New York. Grand Prairie gets to host four group stage matches at its Cricket Stadium, which is undergoing a $20 million renovation and carries the distinction of being the first premier cricket-specific venue in the United States.

The four matches set for Grand Prairie Cricket Stadium are:

― United States vs. Canada on Saturday, June 1

― Netherlands vs. Nepal on Tuesday, June 4

― United States vs. Pakistan on Thursday, June 6

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― Sri Lanka vs. Bangladesh on Friday, June 7

The Grand Prairie Cricket Stadium will host World Cup matches this June.

The T20 World Cup will see a record 20 teams divided into four groups competing in 55 matches for the right to be crowned ICC champions. Teams that qualified this year include host nations West Indies and United States, along with Afghanistan, Australia, Bangladesh, Canada, England, India, Ireland, Namibia, Nepal, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Oman, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea (PNG), Scotland, South Africa, Sri Lanka and Uganda.

The 20 teams have been divided into four groups of five, with the top two teams in each group progressing to the Super Eights. The American team is competing in Group A with India, Pakistan, Ireland and Canada. The Super Eight matches are scheduled to be played in popular Caribbean tourist destinations Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Saint Lucia, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.

Major League Cricket’s Texas Moment

Of course, cricket already has something of a foothold in North Texas with dallas having a team (Texas Super Kings) in Major League Cricket (MLC). Six teams competed in Major League Cricket’s first season last July, including the Los Angeles Knight Riders, MI New York, San  Francisco Unicorns, Seattle Orcas, Washington Freedom and the Texas Super Kings. The Dallas-based Super Kings are co-owned by the Chennai Super Kings, based in Chennai, India, along with Dallas billionaire Ross Perot Jr. and fellow Texan and venture capitalist Anurag Jain.

The Texas Super Kings participated in Major League Cricket’s first draft last March.

“The release of the fixtures is made even more exciting for fans as we enter a new frontier, with the USA hosting a major ICC event for the first time,” ICC chief executive Geoff Allardice says in a statement. “With 16 matches being played across three venues in the USA, it allows us to make a statement in the world’s biggest sports market.”

England is the defending Men’s T20 World Cup champion and will kick off its tournament on Tuesday, June 4 in Barbados against Scotland. The World Cup final will be held at the Kensington Oval in Barbados on Saturday, June 29.

Yes, Grand Prairie Cricket Stadium and North Texas are now part of the one of the bigger cricket shows on earth.

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