Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC), the world’s most active cricket club, the owner of Lord’s Ground and the guardian of the Laws of the game establihed in 1787, has announced its intention to introduce into its overseas touring programme a series of Legacy Tours, aimed at leaving a sustainable and meaningful impact in developing cricket nations.
The first country that MCC will visit as part of the new initiative is Nepal.
Nepal has been chosen with input from the International Cricket Council in acknowledgement of the exciting point at which Nepali cricket is poised, with the national team recently granted One-Day International status and interest in the game growing throughout the country.
MCC last toured Nepal in 2015 soon after the devastating earthquake which destroyed homes and amenities, including cricket facilities. The country has huge playing potential but limited infrastructure, which the Club will seek to address with the help of its charitable arm, the MCC Foundation. The Foundation will be raising funds and exploring ways in which to ensure that the benefits of the Club’s visits have a lasting impact.
John Stephenson, MCC Assistant Secretary (Cricket) said: “I am delighted to be able to announce that MCC’s first legacy tour will be to Nepal.
“The Nepal national team are at Lord’s today for a T20 triangular tournament against MCC and the Netherlands, and their match against the Netherlands has been designated an official International T20. This is the ideal time to harness the growing support for cricket in Nepal.”
Abi Carter, Director of the MCC Foundation, said: “There is potential to make a great impact on and off the pitch in Nepal, and the Foundation would like to encourage the MCC membership and beyond to work with us to bring all the benefits of cricket to Nepali people. All our programmes will be aimed at leaving a sustainable legacy, to ensure the benefits are felt long after MCC’s legacy tour has been completed.”
Paras Khadka, captain of the Nepal Cricket Team, said: “There is so much passion for cricket in Nepal, and with the growth of the national team over the past few years, now is the time to connect that passion and put a structure and development path in place for the next generation of young Nepalese players.
“I am delighted that MCC has chosen Nepal as the first destination for its Legacy Tours and I hope that this will help create a sustainable approach to cricket in the country.”
The legacy tour initiative builds on MCC’s successful philanthropic involvement in Afghanistan and Sri Lanka and will be a first step for the MCC Foundation in its mission to expand overseas and become a world-class cricket charity, as well making an impact close to home in Westminster, at a national level with its network of Hubs which provide free cricket to secondary state school young people.
The MCC Foundation is the charitable arm of MCC. Locally, MCC runs community programmes ranging from delivering cricket coaching in schools to providing skills-training for ex-offenders looking to reintegrate into society.
Nationally, the MCC Foundation operates 51 Cricket Hubs which provide high-quality free coaching to 2,000 children at state secondary schools, and internationally the Foundation has supported projects in Rwanda, Afghanistan, and Sri Lanka.
Donations may be made via the Foundation’s Twitter page (@_MCCFoundation) or at various collection points in-ground.