A new, compact version of cricket brought 10 community teams together as CricKingdom Singapore staged the inaugural SG Community Box Cricket League on Sept 5 and 6.
Held at The Perse School Singapore on Chestnut Drive, the IPL-style franchise tournament featured teams representing different sections of Singapore’s Indian community, with Marathi Peshwas emerging champions after defeating Malayalee Tuskers by just one run in a thrilling final.
Played in an enclosed arena with a soft tennis-style ball and underarm bowling, box cricket offers a quicker and more accessible alternative to the traditional game, with matches lasting about 20 minutes.
Minister of State for Culture, Community and Youth and Manpower Dinesh Vasu Dash, who was the guest of honour for the final and distributed the prizes, said the format could help bring Singapore’s different Indian communities together and promote racial harmony.
Recalling his own connection with cricket from spending a year in India while training at the Defence Staff College, he joked that he had always thought cricket was a long game and was pleased to discover that box cricket matches could finish in 20 minutes.
Former Australian international Trevor Chappell was another special guest.
Trevor, famously involved in cricket’s controversial 1981 underarm delivery against New Zealand, found himself discussing underarm bowling in a considerably friendlier context.
He said the simplified format was easy for newcomers to learn, while the soft ball reduced the risk of injury. With Singapore’s space constraints and limited number of cricket grounds, he felt box cricket was particularly suited to the country.
CricKingdom’s Chetan Suryawanshi, a former Singapore national captain and CEO of SportsKingdom International, described the response as “incredible”.
A highlight was exhibition play involving local Singaporeans who had never previously picked up a cricket bat.
“Thanks to our simple underarm, tennis ball format, they jumped right in and found it incredibly easy to understand and play,” Suryawanshi said. “This truly is the ‘pickleball of cricket’, and a game that absolutely anyone in Singapore can enjoy.”
First-time player Daniel agreed, describing it as “a very simple game to pick up” and friendly for different ages and fitness levels.
Tournament director Kunal Kanti Ghosh said bringing 10 community franchises together was more important than the results.
“No matter how big the tournament becomes in future, I hope we never lose the most important part of it — the community spirit,” he said.
Marathi Peshwas also swept three individual awards, with Sunil Singdeo named Best Batsman, Aditya Dugar Best Bowler, and captain Kshitij Shinde Best Fielder.
Malayalee Tuskers captain Giby Paul was named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player.
Tuskers owner Shaji Philip said the larger objective was to use box cricket to connect families “irrespective of race, gender or background”.
For an inaugural tournament decided by a single run, the cricket could hardly have been closer. But the organisers hope its bigger legacy will be widening the boundaries of who plays the game in Singapore.
