Spreading the word for Cricket Expansion

Have always felt that Cricket should have world following like Football or Tennis, this has led me to follow the developments and progress made by the sport in countries other than the British Commonwealth. Cricket has the numbers to be designated a world sport primarily because of the Indian Subcontinent, but I feel this concentrated support base neither sustainable nor desirable. Outside the subcontinent, cricket is not the main sporting attraction even in the other powerhouses like Australia, England or South Africa. Hence the need to popularise the sport not only in new locales but also the traditional ones.

The ICC has a 3 tiered (around 100 countries) structure for cricket, with the power centre in the first. Without getting into the politics of cricket, let's concentrate on the growth potential of the sport. So the remaining tiers consist of Associates and Affiliates. Among them the upcoming ones are Ireland, Scotland and Afghanistan; these teams consist predominantly home grown players unlike others like UAE. Ireland and Scotland being part of the United Kingdom have historically played cricket within the English established cricketing infrastructure. This is their boon as well as curse, as the English have been known to lure players from them, the most recent being the Irish southpaw, Eoin Morgan. However, the recent developments speak of good days to come; contracting players full time has led further commitment by them, resulting in better results against Full Members and the cascading effect of their improved performance has brought in the sponsors for both the Irish and the Scots. Recently Cricket Ireland came out with a roadmap to attain test status by 2020, this consist of establishing a first class structure and development of under-age cricket.

Afghanistan has been the beneficiary of refugees who have returned back home having learnt the game in refuge camps in Pakistan. They have risen from the Affiliates league to join the Associates within a span of 2-3 years; this phenomenal rise has been well documented and credited for uniting the nation. Recently hosted match against Pakistan was not only well attended (it was held in UAE) but also keenly followed in Afghanistan. Cricket can be a uniting force among the warring tribes and also bring some cheer to the ravaged country; it also plays a similar role in India, where Cricket is a very strong uniting force. 

Other nations which can rise to better levels are Nepal and Papua New Guinea, where cricket is followed and played by the locals. India and Australia share proximity to these nations should help them in their quest. A more selfish motive could be to help them achieve more political clout in the ICC. So I would like to see the following teams playing competitive cricket in 2020, Ireland, Scotland, Afghanistan, Nepal and PNG. The only place where cricket can still make further inroads is Africa where South Africa along with a stronger Zimbabwe can help bring Namibia, Kenya and Uganda to the top level.