PETALING JAYA — About 100 local fans were thrilled to get the chance to take a closer look at the Cricket World Cup trophy, which was brought to Malaysia for the first time in conjunction with the International Cricket Council (ICC) Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023 Trophy Tour here last night.
Among those who turned up to catch a glimpse of the prestigious trophy and record the precious moment on their cameras and mobile phones were the national senior men’s and women’s cricket squads, the junior team and some former national players.
Also present were Malaysian Cricket Association (MCA) patron Tunku Tan Sri Imran Tuanku Ja’afar, its president Mohammed Iqbal Ali Kassim Ali and Olympic Council of Malaysia (OCM) secretary-general Datuk Mohd Nazifuddin Najib.
Mohammed Iqbal said one reason why the ICC chose Malaysia as one of their 19 tour destinations was because of the growing popularity of cricket in this country.
“This stopover is very meaningful for us (MCA) because our vision is to make cricket a popular sport in Malaysia,” he said.
Earlier, the trophy, which will be in Malaysia for two days starting today, was taken to several focal locations around Kuala Lumpur, including Batu Caves and Bukit Tunku.
The ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023 will be held in India from October and defending champions England can expect a torrid time from the home team. — August 26, 2023