The Australian Government and Cricket Australia (CA) have come together in a joint venture to support high-performance cricket across the Pacific region, in a bid to strengthen regional connections.
A recent media release from Pat Conroy, the Minister of International Development and the Pacific, outlined the delivery of the renewed three-year, $1.55 million partnership. It will be delivered through the PacificAus Sports program, a sports diplomacy initiative for various sporting disciplines played across the region. It will assist in identifying and developing talented local cricketers and look to create more high-level playing opportunities for Pacific teams domestically and in Australia.
The partnership also includes the establishment of a Cricket Invitational, an annual tournament designed to facilitate fixtures for Pacific teams against the Australian women and men’s First Nations teams. The first tournament is scheduled to be held in Papua New Guinea in June 2025, coinciding with the country’s 50 years of independence celebrations.
Speaking on the matter, Minister Conroy stated that the “Australian Government is proud to partner with Cricket Australia to provide Pacific cricketers with access to high-performance coaching and competition. We look forward to more Pacific teams competing on the world stage.”
Meanwhile, CA Chief Executive Nick Hockley commented on the initiatives’ benefits to Associate members. “Exposure to more elite-level cricket is vital for ICC Associate Members and this next phase of the partnership will help provide access to Australian cricket competitions and facilities to aid the high-performance programs of national teams in the Pacific region.”
Cricket World Cup Community Facility Fund
It’s not the first time that the Australian government has committed funds towards cricket development in the Pacific region. Previously, it had partnered with ICC, CA and New Zealand Cricket to create the 2015 Cricket World Cup Community Facility Fund; from which USD $400,000 was paid out to install forty-eight cricket pitches across PNG.
Additionally, previous iterations of the partnership saw Women’s Big Bash League cricketers like Ellie Johnston, Ruth Johnston and Rhiann O’Donnell travel to PNG to take part in the 2024 T20 Smash. In 2023, the Australian First Nations men’s and women’s teams toured Vanuatu for a four match T20 series, while former international stars Cathryn Fitzpatrick and Julia Price delivered coaching clinics across the region.
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