In South Africa, you would be hard pressed to find a Japanese cricket fan for various reasons.
Firstly, Japan has never been one of the top cricketing hotbeds. Secondly, most cricket fans in SA support the Proteas or other leading teams like India, for instance.
The beauty of the u.19 Cricket World Cup in Potchefstroom is that previous presumptions can be thrown right into the waters of the Mooi River.
Last weekend, the NWU Oval had a Japanese flavour in the stands. Japanese fans, all the way from the land of the rising sun, were waving their flags, shouting encouragement and urging their team on to fearless cricket against their much larger foes from Sri Lanka.

Kitted out in pink, the eager and excited fans (some of them, parents and family of the players) livened up the action after rain reduced the match to 22 overs a side in this World-Cup encounter. Ultimately, Japan, who are the minnows of the tournament, were beaten easily by nine wickets on the day, after they were bowled out for 43 – but the result did not quench their love for the game.

There is something intrinsic about Japanese character in sport and this was exemplified on Saturday. Even though Japan performed poorly on paper, this participation in the World Cup was more than a results-driven enterprise. It was an opportunity to gain valuable experience against the best in the world.

Most of these Japanese players are still in school or university and do not play as much cricket as other leading nations, where kids play around 30 or more matches a year. This has to be taken into consideration, too. If cricket had the same exposure as football or baseball in Japan, then the Japanese could feature as the best of the ICC affiliates in a couple of years.

Traditionally, Japan has always excelled in a sport – they have that grit and ‘never say die’ attitude and play as a team. Now, they only need the experience and coaching from a young age to get to that next level.