It will be raining sixes in Dandenong, Victoria as a unique cricket and cultural event kicks off bringing Melbourne’s Greek, Sri Lankan and other communities together to celebrate Australia Day 2012.
The inaugural “Australia Day Challenge” will take place on 26 January at Shepley Oval in Dandenong and is divided into two separate events – a 20/20 elite game and also a six-a-side grassroots round robin tournament uniting cricketers from the Sri Lankan, Greek, Indian, Pakistani and Afghan communities combined with local Dandenong cricketers.
The Australia Day Challenge features the first ever Sri Lankan Victorian XI vs Greek Victorian XI, showcasing the elite players from both communities who will fight out a 20/20 battle for the “Alex Kountouris Cup”, named after Alex Kountouris, the current Australian Cricket team physiotherapist who previously worked with the Sri Lankan test team.
Dandenong Premier cricket all rounder James Nanopoulos has been selected as the captain of the first ever Greek Victorian XI and is looking forward to taking on the Sri Lankan XI.
“It is well known that the Victorian Sri Lankan community is passionate about cricket and has a lot of good players, but don’t underestimate the passion of the Greeks for the game we love. The Sri Lankan team will be captained by Athula Samasekara. This promises to be a historical event for the two countries, I am privilege to be a part of it.
“We know we are the underdogs and it will be a proud moment to assemble the best Victorian Greek cricketers and see how we perform as a team.”
Twelve teams will also fight it out in a six-a-side round robin format for the “Serendib News Cup” with teams ranging from the Melbourne Indian Allstars to the Melbourne Hellenic Cricket Club and the St Michaels Colombo Oldboys. The fast paced six-a-side format features five overs per innings and no LBW’s Former Sri Lankan test cricketer and 41 test veteran Asanka Gurusinha will be the special guest at the event and present the trophy to the winning team.
In addition to the cricket events, the Australia Day Challenge will feature major entertainment for children including magic and puppet shows, a women’s softball event, cultural dances and an international food fair showcasing delicious Sri Lankan, Indian and Greek food and a cooking demonstration.
The Australia Day Challenge is launched in partnership with the Australian Hellenic Cricket Federation.
Chairman Nick Hatzoglou commenting on the upcoming event said: “We are thrilled to be working with our Sri Lankan cricket brothers on this event.
“The Greek community is an established and successfully integrated Australian community and we consider it our obligation to work with newer migrant communities to build a more inclusive Australia – and what better way to build bridges than though our national sport of cricket.”