Malaysia

Cricket has been played in what is now Malaysia since the 1880s. Various teams represented Malaya, the Federated Malay States and the Straits Settlements, formed in 1884 by the British. g.

Padang, Singapore). The Singapore Cricket Club, a former affiliate of the Malayan Cricket Association, is the oldest cricket club in the region (founded in 1852). The first recorded match was between Selangor and Malacca in 1887.

The Selangor-Singapore series was played in 1891. Cricket in Johor was played in the early 20th century, but the first recorded cricketing event is the visit of the Australian team led by C. G.

Macartney in 1927. Penang is another historical cricket venue in Malaysia where cricket has been played from British times. The Penang Sports Club was established in the early 1900s.

On 6 June 1927 Malaya beat Australia by 39 runs to make history. Lall Singh became the first Malaysia-born Test player (played for India in their debut Test at Lord's against England in 1932). After World War II, cricket grew in popularity, leading to the founding of the Malayan Cricket Association (MCA) in 1948.

Regional cricket associations like Sabah, Sarawak and Singapore joined and in 1963, the MCA was renamed the Malaysian Cricket Association. In 1965, the independence of Singapore led its association to leave the MCA. The first team to represent Malaysia was in 1970, three years after the MCA became an ICC associate member, when it played an MCC side captained by Tony Lewis in a two-day match, losing by 230 runs.

The same year, Malaysia played the first Saudara Cup match against Singapore, drawing the three-day match. The Saudara Cup match continued annually, and in 1979 Malaysia participated in the first ICC Trophy, failing to progress beyond the first round, a performance they repeated in 1982 and 1986. They reached the plate competition in 1990 and 1994.