da bet7： The Hong Kong Sixes are set to return to the cricketing calendar thisNovember after a four-year absence
Rick Eyre12-Jun-2001The Hong Kong Sixes are set to return to the cricketing calendar thisNovember after a four-year absence.A victim of the late-1990’s Asian economic downturn and a failed attempt toset up a rival Super 8 competition, the seventh six-a-side carnival of itskind in Hong Kong will be staged on the weekend of 10-11 November.The Hong Kong Cricket Association made the announcement yesterday of thetournament’s revival, backed by the sponsorship of Cathay Pacific Airlinesand Standard Chartered Bank. WSG-Asia will be the tournament organisers inconjunction with the HKCA.Eight national teams will be taking part, including the home side, and mostof the major Test-playing nations. The final eight has yet to be announced.It is not clear how strong the international teams will be, as the tournamentwill fall in the middle of a busy time for Test cricket – Australia arepitted against New Zealand, and India against South Africa, in Test matcheson the weekend of the 2001 Sixes.Total prizemoney for the tournament will be $HK two million (approx $US256,000), with the winners walking away with $HK 623,000 ($US 80,000). Allmatches will be played at Kowloon Cricket Club.Pakistan were the winners on the last occasion this event was held inSeptember 1997. They also won the first such event in 1992, other winnersbeing England (1993 and 1994), South Africa (1995) and West Indies (1996).Each team in Sixes cricket consists of six players who play two innings offive overs each. Each member of the fielding side except the wicketkeeperbowls one over. Batsmen are forced to retire once they have scored 31.