Japan to make cricket debut in U19 World Cup

Ag PPI

DUBAI: Little known Japan will make debut in the world of cricket in the ICC Under 19 World Cup 2020 in South Africa. They have qualified for the tournament as the winners of the East Asia-Pacific Qualifier, which they hosted.

Wicket-keeper batsman Marcus Thurgate will lead Japan in the tournament. Neel Date has been named vice-captain. “It means a lot to be the first captain of a Japan team to participate in a global cricket event,” Thurgate said in a statement. “It comes with a lot of pressure to show the world what we are capable of,” he added.

Drawn in the same group as New Zealand, India and Sri Lanka, they will have their task cut out in the youth tournament. Their opening match is against New Zealand on January 18 in Potchefstroom.

Squad: Marcus Thurgate (c), Max Clements, Tushar Chaturvedi, Neel Date (vc), Kento Ota-Dobell, Ishaan Fartyal, Sora Ichiki, Leon Mehlig, Masato Morita, Shu Noguchi, Yugandhar Retharekar, Debashish Sahoo, Reiji Suto, Kazumasa Takahashi, Ashley Thurgate.