History
British rule
Cricket in Myanmar dates back to when Burma was a province of British India. The British brought the game there, as they did to the rest of India, and the game progressed to the level where the Marylebone Cricket Club played two two-day first class matches there on a tour to India in 1926/1927. The first of these was played at the Gymkhana ground in Rangoon against a Rangoon Gymkhana cricket team. That game was drawn with the MCC on top after forcing the home side to follow-on. [7] The second game was against the Burma team themselves at the BAA Ground, also in Rangoon. The MCC won this game restricting Burma to low scores in both their innings, and only having to chase 7 runs to win in their second innings. [8] These remains the country's only first class games.
Reemergence
Following independence cricket remained very much a minority sport in Myanmar, and was nowhere to be seen between 1988 and 1995. In 2002 the game was seeing a resurgence, with a seven team league organised by former Bengal first class player Naresh Kumar , with some former first class players taking part in games attended by around 250 people. Cricket has also been featured on TV news reports. The Myanmar Cricket Federation received a visit from the ICC in 2004 [9] and became an affiliate member of the organisation in 2006. The game is currently played primarily by ex-pats, but the game has recently been introduced into schools. [10]
2006 ACC Trophy
Just two months after gaining ICC membership, Myanmar headed to Malaysia to take part in the 2006 ACC Trophy for the first time. They had a very poor tournament, with a series of heavy defeats to Kuwait (by 9 wickets in 10 overs), to Hong Kong (by 422 runs, with Myanmar being bowled out for 20) and to Bhutan (by 9 wickets in 6.5 overs; Bhutan had also received heavy defeats in their previous matches).
The nadir of their tournament came against Nepal, where Myanmar were bowled out for just 10 off 12.1 overs after losing the toss and being sent in; no batsman scored more than one, the innings included five ducks, and extras top scored with five (three leg byes and two wides). Nepal hit three off the first ball, followed by three wides that went for five, and then hit another three from the second legitimate delivery to win by ten wickets. Some critics called it the greatest mismatch in the history of international cricket, [11] and the score of 10 is the lowest in any level of men's international cricket.
2009–present
With the separation of the ACC Trophy into Elite and Challenge divisions, Myanmar have since competed in the Challenge divisions in both 2009, in which they came last, and 2010. Despite the cricket being of a lesser quality than the Elite division, Myanmar have continued to suffer from heavy defeats.
In August 2017, Myanmar played cricket at the 2017 Southeast Asian Games after a five-year absence from international cricket. In the 50-over tournament, they won only one out of four matches, defeating Indonesia by four wickets. This was Myanmar's first ever victory in international cricket. [12] In the 20-over tournament, they lost both their games.
| v | |
I Geda Suda Arsa 45* (89)
Paing Danu 5/9 (7 overs) | | Htet Lin Aung 25* (41)
Putra Kisawa 2/14 (6 overs) |
- Indonesia won the toss and elected to bat.
- First ever victory in international cricket for Myanmar.
Myanmar played their first T20I on 26 July 2023, against Bhutan, during the 2023 ICC Men's T20 World Cup Asia Qualifier.
| v | |
Sherab Loday 18 (16)
Pyae Phyo Wai 3/29 (4 overs) | | Ye Naing Tun 19 (17)
Karma Dorji 2/4 (2 overs) |
- Bhutan won the toss and elected to bat.
- First ever T20I match for Myanmar.
Myanmar registered their first ever victory in T20Is against China on 29 January 2024 in the 2024 ACC Men's Challenger Cup.
| v | |
Zong Yuechao 19* (25)
Htet Lin Aung 3/16 (4 overs) | | Paing Danu 14 (18)
Chen Zhuo Yue 3/7 (4 overs) |
- Myanmar won the toss and elected to field.
- First ever victory for Myanmar in T20Is
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Michael
Bhutan at Bayuemas Oval, Pandamaran; 26 July 2023
Indonesia at Udayana Cricket Ground, Jimbaran; 19 November 2024
