The men’s and women’s cricket teams from Brazil play an exhibition match in Sao Paulo

The Cricket Brasil Project encourages the growth of sport in the country along with the national federation, and implements support programs for British sport in the mining town of Poços de Caldas.
The event featured athletes from the project who went on to pursue careers in the national team and gave a showcase for the sport that has ascended to the world centers, as well as creating a generation of athletes who are starting to gain international fame in a way that is not widespread in Brazil. The presentation took place on Friday morning (27), in the SPAC Club (South District of São Paulo), where since the beginning of the 20th century the inhabitants of São Paulo have practiced the British sport.

Cricket is the second most popular sport in the world and has gained more and more space among men and women in Brazil through the Cricket Brasil project, of the ICC (International Cricket Council, the federation that regulates sports in the world), which aims to encourage popular sports in a country where Football has its great roots.

The city of Poços de Caldas, in Minas Gerais, is the main center for the promotion of English sports, which are becoming more popular every day and help children and young people to acquire sports habits in the city, making the city a place where children play more. Cricket from football, which is the national passion.

Currently, approximately 2,400 girls and 2,700 boys are participating in the project, distributed over eight cities in Brazil (Poços de Caldas / MG, Águas da Prata / SP, São João da Boa Vista / SP, Botelhos / MG, Aguaí / SP, Palmeiral / MG, Gonçalo / MG and Brasília / DF) where most of the time disadvantaged children learn the rules of the game and do recreational sports activities.

The main goal of Cricket Brasil is the participation of 30,000 children and adolescents in the project over the next few years, which will increase the visibility of the sport in Brazil, take children away from the sedentary lifestyle and, who knows, emerge new athletes who can serve the Brazil national team.

– We want the values ​​of sport, such as discipline, respect and teamwork, to make a difference in the lives of these children/teenagers. You don’t have to be the best at this sport, the important thing is that you learn the game and be part of a team. Our sport is inclusive and we know that everyone depends on everyone to form our group – said England’s Matt Featherstone, former UK professional athlete and president of Projeto Cricket Brasil.

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Thanks to the Cricket Brasil Project’s partnership with Poços de Caldas City Hall, sport is included in the activities of 52 public schools in the municipality, which encourages the practice of sports in the city where the Brazilian team trains.

In the International Cricket Council’s world rankings, Brazil’s men’s team appears at 67th while the women’s team, the most prominent on the international scene, ranks 28th out of 104 female members. The women national team players are professionals, and receive a stipend from the Brazilian Cricket Federation.

The project has already started scouting athletes who have achieved international fame. One of them is player Laura Cardoso, who was introduced to the sport in 2017 through the pilot project and has already made her international debut after being featured in the Brazilian national team.

Laura is one of the Brazilians who played for Parmi Army, an English team that played in an international cricket tournament in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

– I started social project cricket in Poços de Caldas, my hometown, in 2017. After some time of training, our teacher gave me the opportunity to develop and play with Caldense, where I ended up excelling in training and matches, and ended up being called up to the national team, Where I have a contract to serve the country. Little did I know that with sports I could have this opportunity to grow, travel and meet people from all over the world. It has been such a privilege to wear this Brazil jersey knowing I have a lot to learn to become a better sportswoman, and I am so happy that there are so many girls in the project who inspire me to be a cricket sportswoman – said Laura.

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Understanding sports

Cricket is a sport that uses a ball and clubs, and it has its origins in the south of England, during the year 1566. It is considered by many to be a similar sport to baseball and the famous “bat”, and is inspired by a primitive medieval rural game called poo-ball. It was adopted by the nobility in the seventeenth century. It has undergone many transformations over the years to become a much admired sport in the United Kingdom, India and Pakistan.

In Brazil, it became known as taco, because of the similarity of the names it is usually confused with croquet, which is a completely different sport.

Eleven athletes play on each side. The main movements take place in a 20-meter rectangular strip, in the center of the court, where the speed of the ball (made of cork and leather) reaches 150 km / h. It is launched by the bowler against the opponent’s target (three sticks stuck in the ground, called “stumps”, whose combination is known as the wicket), which the batsman defends. The batsman can hit the ball and then run between two areas of the field to score runs (scores), but can be out if the ball touches the target in an area and the batsman is not in that area.

Initially, cricket matches could last up to ten days. Today, most matches are played with two halves (matches last around 2-5 hours).

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