To say the Azzurri has been the flavour of the T20 World Cup won’t be too far from fact. For a nation where football rules hearts, Italy’s cricket team has proven on World Cup debut that they mean business.
In conditions alien to them, the players have dazzled opponents and spectators alike. Particularly at the Wankhede with a 10-wicket thrashing of Nepal, a side higher-placed in the men’s T20I rankings, and then the massive scare they gave two-time champions England at Eden Gardens this week despite chasing a 200-plus total.
Italy have not had much success in the Fifa World Cup in over a decade, but still cricket has a status beyond secondary even after their qualification for the T20 World Cup was confirmed. That quite a few of their players had to play on astro-turf wickets in Rome bears testimony to it.
But they have still left a mark on the tournament, with one last game to go.
Had regular captain Wayne Madsen not hurt his left shoulder in their Cup opener to Scotland, Team Italy’s Super Eight chances could well have been alive now.
“I do believe we’ve left a lasting impression on the competition with one game to go. It would be an ideal finish if we beat the West Indies (at the Eden on Thursday). We didn’t start well against Scotland, but after that, a win against Nepal and a strong game against England is exciting for what the future holds for Italy cricket,” spinner all-rounder Ben Manenti, who won hearts at the Eden with a 25-ball 60 against England, told The Telegraph ahead of their final appearance in this tournament.
Playing a sport not popular in the country, Italy certainly needed Italian-origin players to deliver rather than expats doing most of the work. Ben and his younger brother Harry Manenti, who led the side after Madsen, along with the Mosca brothers — Anthony and Justin — have stood up for the job. And even if sections of people point out that none in the current squad are born in Italy, Ben believes “team mentality” is what’s more significant.
“It has been massive to have a lot of different contributors throughout this tournament. Good teams rely on a team mentality and not individuals, so it has been great to see different blokes stand up on different occasions. Hopefully, that can lead to more players playing in Italy.
“No matter the age, the game will continue to grow and we have put Italy on the map as a place to hopefully have more games of cricket,” he pointed out.
The feedback from home has been inspiring for the band too. Not only have they taken up decent space in newspapers and on television channels back home, the Italian senate has invited the team once they return.
“To honour our performance, our team has been invited by the Italian senate. We will go after a few weeks,” a squad member said.
