Not pitch-perfect; Italy go into bat for T20 World Cup debut

Italy are gearing up for their Twenty20 World Cup debut, hoping a strong showing next month will help the sport break into popular culture in a soccer-obsessed nation that does not have a natural cricket pitch.

Comprising players with British, Australian, South Asian and South African ancestry, the team turned heads by qualifying for this year’s tournament in India and Sri Lanka.

Ranked 28th in the world, Italy overcame the odds by upsetting Scotland in the European qualifiers in July to become the lowest-ranked side to reach the 20-team World Cup.

“We come from all over the world, but each of us has a deep connection to Italy. And I think you’ll see that when we play at the World Cup … you’ll see the pride that we have for Italy,” said Australia-born Harry Manenti, whose grandfather hailed from Brescia, a city at the foot of the Alps in Lombardy.

Manenti, whose five-wicket haul was key in the win over Scotland, has been playing for Italy for over two years along with his brother Ben. They are sons of former Australia women’s rugby team coach John Manenti.

Former Australia international Joe Burns captained Italy during the World Cup qualifiers, but was dropped by the Italian Cricket Federation (FCRI) amid contractual wrangles. Wayne Madsen, who represented South Africa in the 2006 Hockey World Cup, has taken over as skipper.

Key players in the team include England-born batter Emilio Gay, Indian-origin all-rounder Jaspreet Singh and Pakistan-born batter Syed Naqvi.

“It’s almost like we’re a franchise team. People are based all around the world, but they have the soul and passion of a national team,” said coach John Davison, a former Canada batsman who once held the record for the fastest century in the 50-over World Cup, reaching three figures off 67 balls against West Indies in 2003.

Harry Manenti recalled a team meeting before the World Cup qualifiers, at which each player explained his connection to Italy.

“By the end of it there were probably 10 or 15 grown men with a tear in their eye or crying,” Manenti told Reuters.

Managing the team with limited resources has been a challenge.

“We only have artificial pitches in Italy… we’re the only nation participating in the World Cup without a natural-surface pitch. We have to send the team abroad for training, mostly to England and the Netherlands,” FCRI secretary general Luca Bruno Malaspina said.

Cricket’s return to the Olympics at the 2028 Los Angeles Games could clear the way for the first natural-surface cricket pitch to be laid in Italy.

“It’s something that can help us a lot because the Olympic Games are really important in Italy,” Malaspina added.

Growing the game

Although major Italian soccer clubs, including AC Milan and Genoa, have had cricket teams in the past, the sport has never gained much popularity in the country.

“When I went for my physical at the Italian Olympic Committee (CONI) facilities, even the doctors didn’t know what we do,” said Madsen, a Derbyshire stalwart in English county cricket since 2009.

“For us, the legacy and the importance of what we’ll be doing at the World Cup is about growing the game for the next generation of cricketers.”

Malaspina said one of the biggest tasks the FCRI faced was explaining the sport to the Italian populace.

“We have some school-level programmes that introduce children to cricket and hold competitions… but players don’t have enough opportunities to transition to club cricket, like they do in football,” he said.

“It’s a bit strange that we have qualified for this year’s World Cup in cricket, but we’re yet to qualify in football.”

Italy, four-times world champions in soccer, did not qualify for the last two World Cups and must get through playoffs to secure a place at this year’s global showpiece event. T hey have struggled to make an impact in international rugby union, never going beyond the pool stage in 10 World Cup appearances and finishing outside the top three in every Six Nations Championship since 2000.

The Italian cricket team, grouped with former champions West Indies and England along with Bangladesh and Nepal, believe they have a good chance of winning their first World Cup match next month.

“It would be great to see Italian-born-and-raised children, who pick up the game, love it and begin to play, and hopefully one day when we’re all a bit older, we will see them playing for Italy in another World Cup,” Manenti said.