Colin to manage side at Over-60s World Cup

August 24, 2022

SUFFOLK Cricket commercial manager Colin Walters is to manage the Rest of the World side at the inaugural Over-60s World Cup.

The tournament is taking place on the Sunshine Coast, north of Brisbane, in Australia, from September 3rd until September 14th.

Eleven countries will be competing in the 45-overs-a-side competition – hosts Australia, Canada, India, New Zealand, Pakistan, South Africa, Sri Lanka, USA, Wales, West Indies and Zimbabwe.

With England choosing not to enter a team, Colin was asked by the organisers if he could put together a Rest of the World squad to play as the 12th team.

Colin, who plays for Sudbury CC, said: “As I have previously organised teams to play in tournaments and take part in overseas tours, I was approached to get a side together.

“I had to have an interview with the Australian authorities to see if I was a suitable candidate to run the Rest of the World team.”

Colin, who has only just returned to playing after 15 months out through injury, was originally just going to manage the squad, but then members of the party said as he was going he may as well take part.

“All the other teams have had two-and-a-half years to prepare for the tournament, which was previously scheduled for October 2020 but was postponed due to Covid, and we have had about three months!

“I had about 100 people who wanted to go as part of the 17-strong squad, which had a limit of 10 players from the UK, with the remainder from other parts of the world,” said Colin.

Former Suffolk player Simon Clements, who now plays for Hertfordshire Over-60s, was named in the original squad but has had to drop out through injury.

John Stuck, who also used to play for Suffolk, is going on the trip as the umpire for the Rest of the World team.

Colin continued: “The tournament will feature two groups of six, with matches against the other five teams and the top two going through to cross-over semi-finals before the final.

“Depending on whether the other teams finish third, fourth, fifth or sixth they will then play different opponents, guaranteeing each team a total of seven matches.”

The Rest of the World side recently played a 40-over warm-up match at Sudbury, in which they defeated an East Anglian Select XI skippered by Kevin Dobson of Bury St Edmunds CC by one run. The Rest of the World side (front row) and the East Anglian XI are pictured above.

Colin said the squad will fly out on Sunday and play another warm-up match when they face Wales on August 31st ahead of the tournament.

To visit the Over-60s Cricket world Cup website click here

To follow the Rest of the World side’s matches click here

 

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