The National Cricket Stadium was a cricket ground located in

Tangiers Tangier ( ; ; ar, طنجة, Ṭanja) is a city in northwestern Morocco. It is on the Moroccan coast at the western entrance to the Strait of Gibraltar, where the Mediterranean Sea meets the Atlantic Ocean off Cape Spartel. The town is the capi ...

Morocco Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria t ...

. It was the only stadium in

that had been used for senior cricket. Stadium hosted its first International Tournament from 12 to 21 August 2002.

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 243 million people, and has the world's second-lar ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...

and Sri Lanka competed in a 50-overs one day triangular series. The ICC has granted international status to the Tangier Cricket Stadium in

official approval that will allow it to become

North Africa North Africa, or Northern Africa is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region, and it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of Mauritania in ...

's first international cricket venue.

History

The stadium was constructed by

Dubai Dubai (, ; ar, دبي, translit=Dubayy, , ) is the most populous city in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the capital of the Emirate of Dubai, the most populated of the 7 emirates of the United Arab Emirates.The Government and Politics of ...

-based construction tycoon Abdul Rahman Bukhatir as part of his plan to globalise cricket and spread it throughout the

Arab world The Arab world ( ar, اَلْعَالَمُ الْعَرَبِيُّ '), formally the Arab homeland ( '), also known as the Arab nation ( '), the Arabsphere, or the Arab states, refers to a vast group of countries, mainly located in Western A ...

. The ground was selected to hold the

2002 Morocco Cup The 2002 Morocco Cup was a three-team cricket tournament which took place in Tangier, Morocco during August 2002. The tournament was the first occasion on which the highest level of international cricket had been played in North Africa. Pakistan, ...

, which was a tri-series One Day International competition involving

and Sri Lanka. Seven One Day Internationals were played during the competition, with Sri Lanka eventually winning it. This was the first time One Day Internationals had been held by an Affiliate member nation of the

International Cricket Council The International Cricket Council (ICC) is the world governing body of cricket. Headquartered in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, its members are 108 national associations, with 12 Full Members and 96 Associate Members. Founded in 1909 as the ' ...

, though top-class cricket hasn't returned to the ground since. In 2004,

played two matches there against the touring

Marylebone Cricket Club Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) is a cricket club founded in 1787 and based since 1814 at Lord's Cricket Ground, which it owns, in St John's Wood, London. The club was formerly the governing body of cricket retaining considerable global influence ...

Facilities

* Practice area: 6 turf wickets and 2 concrete wickets * Stadium capacity: 5000 * Bowling machines * Large changing rooms for players * The ground is available for hire upon request * Fitness Centre * SPA: massage, Jacuzzi, beauty-saloon, aroma- therapy, reflexology * Sports Centre with multiple usage * 72 equipped suites * 56 bungalows * Restaurant * Club House

Decline

The stadium has gradually fallen into decline, in doing so casting a shadow over the future of Moroccan Cricket. Due to mismanagement and a lack of funds the stadium has not been maintained. The wicket that once existed is now a feeding ground for sheep, and there is a digger stuck in mud in the outfield. Cricket matches have not been played in the stadium since 2013.

List of Centuries

One Day Internationals

List of Five Wicket Hauls

One Day Internationals

References

External links

National Cricket Stadium, Tangier
at

ESPNcricinfo ESPN cricinfo (formerly known as Cricinfo or CricInfo) is a sports news website exclusively for the game of cricket. The site features news, articles, live coverage of cricket matches (including liveblogs and scorecards), and ''StatsGuru'', a ...

National Cricket Stadium, Tangier
at CricketArchive Cricket grounds in Morocco Buildings and structures in Tangier Sport in Tangier 2002 establishments in Morocco {{Morocco-sports-venue-stub