Photo Credit: Cricket Hong Kong
Local cricket fans and event goers will be eager to welcome the return of the first international cricket tournament held in the SAR since 2018; and what a return for the game it promises to be, with some of the biggest names in cricket uniting for a two-week extravaganza featuring stars of the sport from all over the world participating in the first fully professional women’s cricket event in Hong Kong cricket history.
FairBreak Invitational 2023 will showcase 90 elite women’s cricketers from 36 countries and territories, including Hong Kong stars, competing in six high-powered teams, across 11 match days with one mission.
“At FairBreak Global, we envision a world where people have fair and equal access to opportunities that enable them to succeed in their chosen endeavour, independent of gender,” said Mr Shaun Martyn, founder of FairBreak Global.
“Our mission is to progress gender equality and equity on a truly global scale, using cricket as our primary vehicle. In doing so, we aim to create opportunities across sport, health, business, media, arts and education to empower women to pursue success in their chosen endeavour,” added Mr Martyn.
With an estimated fan base of over 2.5 million adherents, second behind only football globally, Cricket is the ideal platform to promote equality and opportunity.
Last year’s inaugural event in Hong Kong was moved due to travel complications around the pandemic, but the tournament when eventually held in Dubai was welcomed by fans the world over. The action was a social media sensation with over 140m follows in 2022 and an estimated total online and print audience reach for the tournament of more than four billion.
The platform – and the fan base – keeps growing larger with the recent announcement that Hong Kong will be one of two FairBreak Invitationals to be played worldwide this year, with the other in Houston, Texas, USA later this year.
Hong Kong captain Kary Chan Ka-Ying, who was contracted to play in last year’s tournament in Dubai, commented on the experience saying, “FairBreak was so impactful for me as a player and as a person. To be immersed in a female-led, high performance environment where results meant everything to us as a team, but were secondary to our wider goals as a tournament, was an unforgettable experience, and one I am excited to share with the people of Hong Kong”.
FairBreak’s powerful mix of world-class sport, with diversity and inclusivity at its heart, will be on display across eleven thrilling match days this April, and the organizers are expending significant effort to share the excitement with the community.
“We are delighted to partner with FairBreak to host this innovative and important event. Women’s cricket is one of the growth areas for the game in Hong Kong and around the world and we are excited at the chance for our leading women’s players to compete with the world’s best,” said Burji Shroff, Chairperson of Cricket Hong Kong, China.
“We are even more enthusiastic at the idea of thousands of young girls being able to watch these impressive female role models in action. It has been five years since we have hosted an international event, so we are excited about bringing the FairBreak Invitational to Hong Kong.
“This tournament is as important as it is entertaining, and presents a perfect rallying point for the Hong Kong cricket community and beyond. It will also be the perfect opener for what we expect will be a stellar calendar for international cricket in Hong Kong this year,” added Burji. “We are also excited to see cricket return to the Historic Kowloon Cricket Club. The venue hold cherished memories for fans and international players alike hosting the Hong Kong International Cricket Sixes for a number of years.”
In keeping with its mission of equality, accessibility and inclusion the event features a special concessions ticket pricing structure.
Adult general admission is HK$200 for a full nine-hour day (09.00-18.00), including two matches (10.00am and 2.00pm daily). Tickets for the tournament finals on Sunday, 16 April, are $300.
To attract the next generation of cricket fans, children can enter the tournament free from Monday – Friday. A limited number of children’s tickets will be sold on the two tournament weekends (Saturday and Sunday April 8-9 and 15-16) for only HK$100.
Tickets will go on sale via Ticketflap on Monday, 20 February 2023, at www.ticketflap.com.
Event partners Cricket Hong Kong, China will also activate its plethora of school and community programmes around the event, while other special interest and community groups will be hosted during the tournament.
The participating teams and players will be announced shortly. For more details please visit: www.fairbreak.net.
