Singh’s surpass Smith’s as South-Asian players rise in Aussie cricket

South-Asian players rise in Aussie cricket : The surge of South-Asian players in Australian cricket has led to a notable increase in the number of players with Singh’s compared to Smith’s. 

This demographic shift reflects the growing diversity within Australian cricket, with players of South-Asian descent making significant contributions at various levels of the sport.

As per the registration data for the 2023-24 season, Singh’s was the most registered surname with 4262 entries while 2364 Smiths were registered. The number of Singhs first exceeded Smiths in 2018-19. 

Also Read: IPL 2024: Schedule, matches, venues, live streaming, all details

This significant trend highlights the growth in South-Asian registered participation across all areas of Australian Cricket, as well as the opportunities to grow attendances with India’s men and women’s teams and the Pakistan’s men’s team to tour Australia next summer. 

Further emphasising this growth, Patel was the third most common surname with other typically South-Asian surnames Sharma, Khan, and Kumar among the 16 most registered on Play HQ. 
Cultural & linguistically diverse (CALD) Cricket participation continues to grow across Australian Cricket with a 36% increase since the last pre-Covid season in 2019/20.  

This comes as Cricket Australia (CA) actively pursues strategies to integrate diverse communities into Australian cricket. Australian Cricket’s Multicultural Action Plan, launched in December by Usman Khawaja and Lisa Sthalekar, is a significant part of cricket’s commitment to fostering inclusivity within the sport. 

As well as increased participation, Australian Cricket is looking at ways to ensure cricket lovers from multicultural communities attend more matches by providing welcoming and inclusive environments and experiences. 

Also Read: Lok Sabha Elections 2024 | EC of India issues notification for first phase of polls

In the 2024-25 season the white ball tour by Pakistan men, the five Test Border-Gavaskar Trophy series and the three-match ODI series against India women will all provide tremendous opportunities for South-Asian communities, particularly, to get out and show their love and support for the game. 

James Quarmby, CA’s Head of Participation says, “The continuing growth of registrations from multicultural communities is a testament to the progress being made toward our goal of being a Sport for All. “

“We want people from multicultural communities to play a major role in all parts of the game at community and elite level, whether that is as players, coaches, officials, administrators or fans,” James Quarmby further added. 

Also Read: EXPLAINER | Sidhu Moosewala's mother’s IVF journey: Know about Govt’s letter, ART Bill 2021 & IVF treatment

“With Pakistan coming for a white ball series and India’s men’s and women’s teams both in Australia next summer, we hope the surge in registrations from multicultural communities will be reflected in even bigger attendances at those matches," he further added. 

(With inputs from Reporter- Daljeet Bakshi ; Location - Adelaide, Australia)

-

Join Whatsapp Channel