5 cricket teams you didn't know existed

Cricket is often looked at as a sport which is played by few countries in the world. Considering there are 206 sovereign states and only 8 Test playing nations in the world today, one might think that seems like a fair assessment. But having a closer look, you’ll find out that three of the 8 most populated countries in the world have a cricket crazy population. India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh happen to constitute for just over 22% of the world’s population and that is in itself makes cricket a huge sport – quite possibly the second biggest in the world after football.Over the last few years, we’ve seen many new countries try their hand. Teams like Afghanistan and Nepal have impressed the world with their improved performance over the past decade. On the other hand, there are many teams that have been around for ages, but haven’t been in the news for some reason or the other.Here, we look at 5 teams that haven’t quite managed to catch the eye of the public:(The list is in alphabetical order)

#1 Allahakbarries

Allahakbarries

Famous author J.M. Barrie started this club way back in 1890 when he assembled a group of writers, some even unaware of the game’s existence when they started off. The Allahakbarries weren’t a team of athletes, far from it in fact.

The name ‘Allahakbarries’ was derived from the phrase Allah Akbar which means God is Great in Arabic. Barrie, showing his humourous side, named the team so because he knew that there was no chance of the team registering a victory without divine intervention. Legend says that some of the cricketers in the team did not even know which side of the bat to use while at the crease.

In 2011, a book aptly named Peter Pan's First XI was released detailing the adventures of the Allahkbarries.

#2 Authors CC

Authors Cricket Club

Having being in existence for over a hundred years now, Authors Cricket Club is one of the oldest cricket teams in the world. This cricket club was founded by famous writers PG Wodehouse, AA Milne and Arthur Conan Doyle.

Authors CC go on tours to foreign countries to this day, and are very active in the cricket scene in England. It will come as no surprise to you, considering their field of occupation, that they have published a book on the history of the club named ‘The Authors XI: A Season of English Cricket from Hackney to Hambledon’.

Well known modern-day writers like Tom Holland and Jonathan Wilson have played for the team. Having beaten Vatican CC in a close encounter this year, the team of authors have a match lined-up against the Chruch of England next year.

#3 Brazil national cricket team

The Brazilian national cricket team

When you think of football, the first thing that probably comes to your mind is Brazil. When you think of Brazil, the first thing that definitely comes to your mind is football.

While cricket isn’t obviously that big a sport in Brazil these days, you’ll be surprised to find out that cricket has a long history in the South American country.

In the mid-19th century, with a huge British population in the country, Brazil was home to numerous cricket clubs which made the sport one of the most popular pass times in the country. Flamengo, who are one of the most successful clubs in Brazilian football history, were founded in 1895 as a multi-sports club who also were involved in cricket.

With football turning into a religion in Brazil during the start of the 20^th century, people completely lost touch with cricket. The Brazilian cricket team had to wait until 2003 to get recognised by the ICC and the sport has been on the up in recent times. What’s most encouraging is that unlike in countries like Germany and Italy, where most of the players are immigrants from the sub-continent, the Brazilian national cricket team is mostly made up of natives.

#4 South Korea women\'s cricket team

South Korean women cricketers

East Asia isn’t known for its cricketing prowess, but that might be changing. China have already taken steps to improve in the sport, with the ICC playing a major part in helping cricket grow in the most populated country in the world.

Another country who have shown interest in cricket lately are South Korea. Having recently constructed the first cricket stadium in the country for the Asian Games in Incheon, cricket is growing in the East Asian country with young girls especially taking a huge interest in the game.

Despite losing both their games after being bowled out for 49 and 57, the Korean girls have expressed their desire to improve and have been looking at Sachin Tendulkar for inspiration.

#5 St. Peter\'s Cricket Club - Vatican

We’ve seen a lot of teams look for divine intervention when things go wrong on the cricket field. Well, here we have a team that will look for it every second of every match.

Vatican, the smallest country in the world, has its own cricket club. It will come as no surprise to anyone that it is known as ‘St. Peter's Cricket Club’, the saint after which the main church at the Vatican – the focal point of Catholic faith worldwide – is named after.

Recently, they travelled to England to take on a Chruch of England XI in a one-off T20 game for which reasonable hype was created on social media. Before the game, the Pope himself received the entire team at a private audience. The Pope, who is known to be a huge football fan, even posed for a photo with the team holding a cricket bat in his hand.

The team is mainly made up of Indians. Apart from 7 players from the largest democracy in the world, the team consists of 2 players from Sri Lanka, and 1 each from Pakistan and England.

St. Peter’s CC went down in the match by 6 wickets, but came out with their heads held high having taken a more experienced side to the final over.

#6 Iceland Cricket Team

Iceland cricket team

Iceland, given its proximity to the Arctic, does not provide ideal conditions for a game of cricket to be staged. It hasn’t, however, deterred their people from forming a cricket team of their own.

While still a lot of work has to be done for the sport to gain some sort of recognition in the country, the fact that they have recently applied to join the European Cricket Council, which will make them an affiliate member of the International Cricket Council (ICC), does provide encouragement. What also provides hope is the fact that the Iceland cricket team, due to the lack of proper cricket fields in the country, went to the extent of playing a match against an amateur team from Britain on top of the Langjökull glacier, highlighting their love for the game in spite of endless difficulties.

They also have an official Facebook page, which can be seen here.

The relief of this week, & the hope it offers for the future, I will never forget. Just think - 3 wickets for @AuthorsCC versus the Vatican!

— Tom Holland (@holland_tom) September 19, 2014