Austria national cricket team
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Austria national cricket team (German: Österreichische Cricketnationalmannschaft) is the men's team that represents the Republic of Austria in international cricket. The team is organised by the Austrian Cricket Association (ACA), which became an affiliate member of the International Cricket Council (ICC) in 1992 and an associate member in 2017.[1]
Austrian Cricket Association logo | ||||||||||
| Association | Austrian Cricket Association | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Personnel | ||||||||||
| Captain | Aqib Iqbal (2024) | |||||||||
| Coach | Daniel Eckstein | |||||||||
| International Cricket Council | ||||||||||
| ICC status | Associate member[1] (2017) | |||||||||
| ICC region | Europe | |||||||||
| ||||||||||
| International cricket | ||||||||||
| First international | v  Guernsey at Castel, Guernsey, 21 May 1990 | |||||||||
| T20 Internationals | ||||||||||
| First T20I | v  Romania at Moara Vlasiei Cricket Ground, Moara Vlăsiei; 29 August 2019 | |||||||||
| Last T20I | v Romania at Moara Vlasei Cricket Ground, Ilfov County; 30 July 2026 | |||||||||
| ||||||||||
| T20 World Cup Qualifier appearances | 1[a] (first in 2023) | |||||||||
| Best result | 7th place (2023) | |||||||||
| ||||||||||
| As of 30 July 2026 | ||||||||||
The Austria national team made its international debut in 1990, at the European Cricketer Cup in Guernsey. It has since regularly competed in European Cricket Council tournaments, usually in the lower divisions, and also often plays bilateral series against other European sides.[5]
History
Cricket was played by English gardeners, tradesmen and bank staff working in Vienna at the end of the 19th century. In 1894, the Vienna Cricket and Football-Club was founded. However cricket then disappeared in Austria until after the Second World War, when it was played recreationally by British occupying troops.[6]
The modern era of Austrian cricket began in May 1975, when the Australian Kerry Tattersall introduced the game to his pupils at the Wiener Handelsakademie (Viennese Commercial Academy) where he was teaching English, and formed the Vienna Cricket Club. Early opponents came from the United Nations (United Nations CC) and diplomatic services (Five Continents CC), and these founder clubs survive to this day.[6]
Cricket in Austria predominantly remains Vienna-based: 11 of the 18 member clubs are based in Vienna. CC Velden '91 is the oldest non-Viennese club, operating since 1991. The latest addition to the ACA is ASKÖ Steyr CC from Upper Austria.
2018–present
In April 2018, the ICC decided to grant full Twenty20 International (T20I) status to all its members. Therefore, all Twenty20 matches played between Austria and other ICC members since 1 January 2019 have the full T20I status.[7]
Austria played its first T20I match against Romania on 29 August 2019 during the 2019 Continental Cup in Romania.[8]
Tournament history
T20 World Cup Europe Regional Final
| ICC T20 World Cup Europe Regional Final records | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Round | Position | GP | W | L | T | NR | |
| 2019 | Did not qualify | |||||||
 2021 | ||||||||
 2023 | Round-robin | 7/7 | 6 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 1 | |
 2025 | Did not qualify | |||||||
| Total | 1/4 | 0 Title | 6 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 1 | |
Other tournaments
| T20 World Cup Europe Sub-regional Qualifiers | European Cricket Championship | European T20 Championship |
|---|---|---|
|
The Austria national team has participated in a considerable number of international tournaments, including hosting three tournaments since 2000:
| Year | Event and location | Participating nations | No. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | ECC (European Cricket Council) Representative Festival | Norway, Slovenia, Croatia, Finland, Austria | 5 |
| 2001 | ECC Trophy in Seebarn and Velden | Sweden, Malta, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland, Greece, Belgium, Austria, Croatia, Finland | 10 |
| 2002 | ECC European Cricket Championships, B Division in Northern Ireland | Austria, France, Germany, Gibraltar, Israel, Portugal | 6 |
| 2003 | ECC Notts Sport Trophy in Seebarn and Markomannenstrasse | Malta, Portugal, Spain, Luxembourg, Switzerland, Greece, Belgium, Croatia, Finland, Austria, Norway | 11 |
Austria have been placed in Division Five of the newly expanded European Championship from 2008.
Grounds
Current squad
Updated as of 23 August 2025.
This lists all the players who were part of the Austrian squad for the 2025 home series against Belgium.
| Name | Age | Batting style | Bowling style | Last T20I | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Batters | |||||
| Armaan Randhawa | 31 | Right-handed | N/a |  2025 | |
| Zeshan Arif | 28 | Right-handed | Leg break |  2025 | |
| All-rounder | |||||
| Aqib Iqbal | 29 | Right-handed | Right-arm medium | 2025 | Captain |
| Bilal Zalmai | 37 | Right-handed | Right-arm off break | 2025 | |
| Ranjit Singh | 36 | Right-handed | Right-arm medium | 2025 | |
| Karanbir Singh | 31 | Right-handed | Right-arm medium | 2025 | |
| Zeeshan Goraya | 42 | Right-handed | Right-arm medium | 2025 | |
| Wicket-keeper | |||||
| Amar Naeem | 47 | Right-handed | N/a | 2025 | |
| Mehar Cheema | 32 | Right-handed | N/a | 2025 | |
| Pace Bowlers | |||||
| Hamid Safi | 25 | Right-handed | Right-arm medium | 2025 | |
| Saad Cheema | 22 | Right-handed | Right-arm medium | 2025 | |
| Baseer Khan | 30 | Right-handed | Right-arm medium | 2025 | |
| Sahel Zadran | 36 | Right-handed | Right-arm medium | 2025 | |
| Umair Tariq | 28 | Right-handed | Right-arm medium | 2025 | |
| Waqar Zalmai | 35 | Right-handed | Right-arm medium | 2025 | |
| Ziaurahman Shinwari | 24 | Right-handed | Right-arm medium | 2025 | |
Club cricket
There are three club competitions within Austria: the ACA (Austrian Cricket Association) League, and ACA Trophy (north & south).
The ACA League comprises (in 2006) 14 teams, 10 of which are based in Vienna. The ACA Trophy sometimes includes teams from outside Austria, for example from Poland and the Czech Republic.
Records
International Match Summary — Austria[9]
Last updated 30 July 2026.
| Playing Record | ||||||
| Format | M | W | L | T | NR | Inaugural Match |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Twenty20 Internationals | 108 | 67 | 38 | 0 | 3 | 29 August 2019 |
Twenty20 International
- Highest team total: 322/7 v Hungary, 28 June 2026 at GB Oval, Sződliget[10]
- Highest individual score: 164, Karanbir Singh v Hungary, 28 June 2026 at GB Oval, Sződliget[11]
- Best individual bowling figures: 5/5, Aqib Iqbal v Belgium, 24 July 2021 at Royal Brussels Cricket Club, Waterloo[12]
|
Most T20I runs for Austria[13]
|
Most T20I wickets for Austria[14]
|
T20I record versus other nations[9]
Records complete to T20I #4053. Last updated 30 July 2026.
| Opponent | M | W | L | T | NR | First match | First win |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| v. Full members | |||||||
 Ireland | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 23 July 2023 | |
| vs Associate Members | |||||||
| Belgium | 12 | 8 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 24 July 2021 | 25 July 2021 |
 Bulgaria | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 30 July 2022 | 30 July 2022 |
 Croatia | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 23 May 2026 | |
 Cyprus | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 14 March 2026 | 16 March 2026 |
 Czech Republic | 8 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 30 August 2019 | 30 August 2019 |
 Denmark | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 24 July 2023 | |
 Finland | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 11 June 2026 | |
 France | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 16 June 2024 | 16 June 2024 |
 Germany | 11 | 2 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 9 June 2022 | 10 June 2022 |
| Guernsey | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 27 July 2022 | 27 July 2022 |
 Hungary | 11 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 4 June 2022 | 4 June 2022 |
 Isle of Man | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 9 July 2023 | |
 Israel | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 June 2024 | 10 June 2024 |
| Jersey | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 20 July 2023 | |
 Luxembourg | 7 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 31 August 2019 | 31 August 2019 |
 Malta | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 February 2025 | 3 February 2025 |
| Norway | 7 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 31 July 2022 | 31 July 2022 |
 Portugal | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 June 2024 | 12 June 2024 |
| Romania | 11 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 29 August 2019 | 25 July 2025 |
| Scotland | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 25 July 2023 | |
 Slovenia | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 25 July 2022 | 25 July 2022 |
 Switzerland | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 30 May 2025 | 30 May 2025 |
 Sweden | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 10 June 2022 | 10 June 2022 |
 Turkey | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 31 August 2019 | 31 August 2019 |
See also
Notes
- From 2023 edition onwards, T20 World Cup Qualifier refers to the Regional Final of the ICC Europe region.
