FAIRBREAK MISSION IS CLOSE TO HER HEART SAYS SHAMILIA CONNELL, WHO TAKES HER ROLE MODEL DUTIES AT THE GENCOR FAIRBREAK INVITATIONAL 2023 SERIOUSLY 

• Broadcast quality video of the interview featuring Shamilia can be downloaded here: https://we.tl/t-hAle1ikhFG  
• Hi-res images of Shamilia Connell can be downloaded here: https://we.tl/t-NzoG0YSFZd

Hong Kong (April 7, 2023) – West Indies fast bowler Shamilia Connell is one of cricket’s global stars, with a career tally of 85 wickets across 58 WODIs and 63 WT20Is. The Barbadian, known for being the ‘energy person’ of the West Indies dressing room, believes she has an important role to play at FairBreak tournaments, going far beyond just crafting victory for her side.

Connell is also an important role model for bowlers around the world and will take on those duties as well in her second appearance at the Gencor FairBreak Invitational.

Shamila Connell said: “Coming in to FairBreak 2022, basically I was a role model to the other girls from other countries and I just had to come out and perform and keep that going.

“You don’t usually see them (Players from Associate countries), so it was good exposure to come here and see the talent they have. I get a lot of feedback (about my performance) from them as well.”

Speaking about her team the Warriors, who opened the 2023 tournament with a convincing 7-wicket win, Connell is confident of a better showing this year: “It is a good feeling to be back with the Warriors. Last year we didn’t get the results that we wanted, but this time we have a got a stronger team and hopefully we can go out and do something better.”

FairBreak players do not have numbers on the back of their shirts, instead they wear their flags, something that Connell is proud of: “This flag is very special to me, and it is a moment of great honour to wear this flag on my back.”

Looking ahead Connell says the FairBreak Mission is one that is close to her heart: “This was a great aim of FairBreak to work on equality for women, not just in sport but in general. This is a big thing for me and so I take it very personally.”

“It is an exciting tournament, especially with the exposure, and the environment and the vibes.”

CRICKET HONG KONG WINS ICC DEVELOPMENT INITIATIVE AWARD FOR FAIRBREAK INVITATIONAL 2022

Hong Kong (April 7, 2023) – Cricket Hong Kong and FairBreak Global Cricket are delighted to announce that they have won the ICC Development Initiative of the Year for the Asian Region for their role in delivering the ground-breaking Fairbreak Women’s International T20 Tournament 2022.

This is one of six development awards announced by the ICC, for the year 2022 to reward and recognize outstanding programmes and performances put in place by member countries, to help develop cricket in their regions.

As Regional winners of the Award, Cricket Hong Kong and the FairBreak Invitational Tournament will now move into a pool of Global Nominees and are in contention for the Global ICC Development Initiative Award for 2022.

Chairperson of Cricket Hong Kong, Mr. Burji Shroff said: “Cricket Hong Kong is thrilled to receive this news and I would like to congratulate my colleagues at CHK for taking on and partnering with FairBreak Global in this bold initiative. One of the key reasons why we backed FairBreak was because its vision and philosophy align perfectly with those of Cricket Hong Kong – equality, inclusivity and opportunity.

“The Gencor FairBreak Invitational provides a level playing field to not just the top international women’s cricketers, but also for players from Associate Member Nations to showcase their skills, while raising their own cricketing standards.

Speaking about the partnership with FairBreak Global Shroff said: “Cricket Hong Kong would like to congratulate our partners FairBreak Global, all players, officials, volunteers, and the management team who made the 2022 tournament such a great success.”

The Chairperson of CHK added: “We would also thank Gencor, the principal sponsors and all other commercial partners for making this possible. A special note of gratitude to the Emirates Cricket Board for hosting the event in 2022 when Hong Kong was under COVID protocols. We look forward to continuing this wonderful collaboration with Fairbreak, well into the future.”

Founded in 2013 by Shaun Martyn, FairBreak Global is an initiative aimed at gender equality, through offering greater opportunities to women, across sport, health, business, media, arts and education.

Speaking about the recognition from the ICC, Shaun Martyn, Founder of FairBreak Global said: “It is a great honour for us to be recognised by the ICC for all the hard work we have put in over the last decade, taking us a step closer towards our goal of progressing the women’s game and giving it its due recognition.

“Winning the Asian Region ICC Development Initiative of the Year Award, also offers the Gencor FairBreak Invitational T20 tournament a global platform, from which to seek greater support and partnerships. This is crucial in keeping the momentum of our previous year’s success going.

“I am grateful to Cricket Hong Kong for believing in the FairBreak Mission, and for being the first Cricket Board to back what we were doing. Our goal is to offer opportunities to women’s players, especially from Associate countries, and to raise the standard of cricket across the board.”

R Venkat, the Managing Director of Gencor, the title sponsors of the tournament added: “We are so happy to see years of work getting the due recognition. Thanks to Cricket Hong Kong for supporting us and making this happen.”

The Gencor FairBreak Invitational 2023, is currently underway and is being played from April 3-16, 2023, at the iconic Kowloon Cricket Club in Hong Kong. The two-week tournament brings together some of the world’s top women players, from both Test and Associate nations.

Tickets are now on sale for the 2023 Cricket Hong Kong FairBreak Invitational on Ticket Flap https://www.ticketflap.com/fairbreakt2023 .

Note: To celebrate this outstanding achievement, the organizers have decided to open the gates to public at Kowloon Cricket Club for the two days of April 8^th and 9^th (Saturday and Sunday), so that all members of the Hong Kong public have the opportunity to see these top athletes from 37 countries compete at the highest level”.

Visit FairBreak.Net for more information and follow us on our social media accounts by clicking on the following: Facebook  Twitter  Instagram