ICC Introduces Global Criiio Day as Nigerian Girl Becomes One Millionth Participant
Oru Leonard
The International Cricket Council (ICC) has introduced November 1 as Criiio Day, an annual global celebration of grassroots cricket, following the programme’s achievement of reaching one million participants worldwide since its launch in 2021.
A 13-year-old Nigerian girl, Saidat Hamzat from Lagos State, has emerged as the one millionth participant in the ICC’s grassroots cricket development programme, marking a significant milestone for Nigeria and the global cricket community.
The annual celebration is designed to recognise the programme’s impact in expanding cricket participation, promoting grassroots development and encouraging more people, particularly children, to embrace the sport.
Criiio is an entry-level cricket initiative developed by the ICC to make the game accessible to everyone, regardless of age, location or background. Operating under the principle of ‘anytime, anywhere, by anyone’, the programme offers a free and adaptable learning curriculum in 18 languages.
Saidat, who initially knew little about cricket, discovered the sport when a Criiio Festival was organised at her school. The experience, which combined music, entertainment and sporting activities, sparked her interest and transformed her attitude towards the game.
“Cricket has given me purpose, discipline and joy; it has changed my life,” she said, explaining that playing the sport has boosted her confidence and improved her social interaction with friends and classmates.
Her mother, Aisha Abeke Hamzat, also acknowledged the positive changes in her daughter, expressing hope that she would eventually represent Nigeria in the national cricket team.
ICC Chief Executive Officer, Sanjog Gupta, described the one-million-participant milestone as evidence of the programme’s transformative impact and the ability of grassroots sports to unite communities and create opportunities.
He noted that Criiio has succeeded by eliminating barriers to participation and making cricket easier to learn and play in schools, parks and other community spaces.
Gupta added that cricket’s return to the Olympic Games at Los Angeles 2028 presents an opportunity to introduce the sport to millions of new participants, particularly children, through expanded grassroots initiatives.
To improve access to equipment, the ICC has distributed approximately 5,000 cricket sets through the programme, with support from DP World, its Official Global Logistics Partner, under the Beyond Boundaries Initiative.
The programme has recorded significant adoption across ICC member countries, with 65 Associate Members implementing national initiatives and all 12 Full Members having certified Criiio trainers.
The ICC also disclosed that the programme has achieved equal male and female participation, with women and girls accounting for 50 per cent of its one million participants.
Africa leads all continents with more than 400,000 participants, while Brazil has recorded nearly 200,000 players, making it the leading individual country. Bhutan has also surpassed 100,000 participants.
Other notable successes include Tanzania, where the programme was adapted into a Swahili-language initiative known as Chanzo Cricket. Its success has prompted the Tanzanian government to make cricket a priority sport across the country’s 3,542 secondary schools.
In Nigeria, the initiative is also creating pathways for young talents to progress into competitive cricket. One example is Chisom Mary Okpe, who discovered the sport through a school Criiio session in 2025 before progressing to Nigeria’s Under-19 team, with the possibility of featuring at next year’s ICC Under-19 Women’s T20 World Cup.
Similarly, Argentina’s 14-year-old Luna Olivera progressed from a community-based Criiio programme in 2023 to selection for the country’s Women’s Under-19 team in 2026.
The ICC explained that November 1, represented as 1.11, was selected for the annual celebration because the three ‘i’s in the Criiio brand symbolise the stumps and bails that form a cricket wicket.
The inaugural Criiio Day will feature a global digital campaign, with ICC member associations encouraged to share success stories and activities on social media using the hashtag #criiioDay.
The initiative is expected to strengthen grassroots cricket development and inspire another million people across the world to take up the sport.
Further information about the programme is available on the ICC website: [https://www.icc-cricket.com/criiio](https://www.icc-cricket.com/criiio).
