Papua New Guinea is slowly but surely providing cricket its next fairytale. The East Asia Pacific nation, where the earliest signs of our sport date back to early 1900s, has just recently qualified for the next year's T20 World Cup in Australia, which will also be its first-ever major ICC event after having missed out by a whisker on many occasions.
Remarkable thing about PNG's cricketing rise is that the sport is yet to fully spread beyond the national capital Port Moresby; the administrators have been trying to reach the far off places to tap the talent despite geographical challenges in the country.
But still, you won't find a single non-native cricketer wearing the mix of yellow and black at this level; with most of them coming from the coastal village of Hanuabada and many of whom have had experience of plying their trade domestically in neighbouring powerhouses Australia and New Zealand.
Which makes that journey, the recent hurray in Dubai and Abu Dhabi even more inspirational and historical.
"Definitely the greatest moment for every cricketer in the country," PNG captain Assad Vala told Reuters.
"We came close on so many occasions. To get the job done this time, a lot of hard work has been put in behind the scenes to get where we are."
"It will open more doors for cricket. More people will come and support cricket, the sponsors and all those stuff."
PNG has booked a place in the preliminary round next year where it will be contesting with Sri Lanka, Ireland and Oman for one of the two places available towards Super 12 from Group A.
"I don’t think players will know the enormity of it until they go home," said Cricket PNG chief executive Greg Campbell.
"Once they land home, they will understand and take it all in. They might do a few more celebrations in the next few weeks."
Campbell foresees a bright future ahead where PNG would possibly be able to qualify for an ODI World Cup as well. The nation first secured ODI status in 2014 and earlier this year made it to the new ICC Cricket World Cup League 2; part of the qualification process for 2023 World Cup in India.
"The long-term goal is to make the 50-overs World Cup. We want to perform at this stage consistently and we want to be the next rising cricket associate powerhouse in the world."
"The players know they got a lot of work to do. They are laying a legacy, a foundation for the young boys. It’s not a one-off, we want to play consistently on this stage," Campbell added.
(Inputs from Reuters)
