American Premiere League promises largest cricket tourney in United States

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The American Premiere League is bringing the largest cricket tournament ever held in the United States to Yogi Berra Stadium in Little Falls, New Jersey Sept. 20-30, 2021, and ticket sales are open now, organizers announced in a press release Aug. 9.

Founded by entrepreneur Jay Mir, American Premiere League said it is working to “elevate the sport to a level found in other cricket-loving nations.”

Athletes from across the United States and the world are expected to participate. Players have already been selected, the press release said, through a series of nation-wide tryouts throughout the summer at which Mir and his team of scouts sought out the best players for Team Americans, Team English, Team Indians, Team Australians, Team Bengalese (Bangladesh), Team Windees (West Indies) and Team Paks (Pakistan) as they face off for the championship

“… fans will get to witness seven nationally-branded teams in exciting cricket competition,” organizers said

They also promise a one-of-a-kind opening ceremony featuring live music, dancing, a spectacular drone show and fireworks display at the official start Sept. 13.

Tickets for the Opening Ceremony and all scheduled games are on sale now at AmericanPremiereLeague.org. Tickets for the September 13 Opening Ceremony are $50 and $100. Tickets for all games are $50.00.

Cricket is the second most popular sport in the world, second only to soccer, with a global following of 2.5 billion, the press release noted.

However, in the United States, the sport is mainly enjoyed by communities of ex-pats from cricket playing countries.

“…  but the potential for growth in America is tremendous,” according to organizers who say that to-date, there has never been a truly organized effort to build momentum and take the sport into the mainstream in this country – that is until APL surfaced led by Mir.

The format featured at the American Premiere League games will be on the T20, which lasts around as long as a baseball game, unlike the famously long formats of cricket famously in which games last for days,

Among several international guest players will be  Australian professional cricket star Tom Beaton who will captain Team Australia, the press release said.

The Most Valuable Player of the tournament will be awarded a brand-new Chevrolet Corvette.

“Our teams are representing seven diverse communities throughout the U.S. and our goal is to bring these communities together through this sport,” Mir is quoted saying in the press release. “Those of us who know cricket know how passionate its fans are and I believe American sports fans will love this sport as much as fans in other countries if given the opportunity to watch quality competition like American Premiere League.”

Visit www.AmericanPremiereLeague.org for complete schedule