Chiang Mai & Gymkhana Sixes
- Ncakos316
- 14 minutes ago
- 3 min read
There are two things I love most in this world: travel and cricket. Luckily, I was recently given the opportunity to do both in an area of Thailand I had not previously visited - Chiang Mai.
Now, for a bit of background, growing up in South Africa it is easy to fall in love with cricket. When I was younger I fell in love with the images of players like Warne, Cullinan, Donald, Pollock, Rhodes, Waugh, Tendulkar, Akram, Klusener and many, many more. I got my first cricket bat when I was six years old and I have not looked back since. I played throughout school and university but when I got my first proper job in 2012, my time to play cricket grew far too limited for me to be able to commit to practice and weekly matches. Due to this, I did not play any cricket between 2012 and 2023 when I discovered, via social media, a little club in Hong Kong called Hong Kong Scottish and, would you believe it, they had recently started a cricket section.
So, after a few net sessions at the United Services Recreation Club, I decided to become a full member of Hong Kong Scottish Cricket. I ended up playing a few games for the club (on some of the dodgiest pitches and surfaces you could imagine) and even captained on a couple occasions, thoroughly enjoying every minute of it. My desire to play cricket was back and I have the Hong Kong Scottish lads to thank for it.
Fast forward to 2025. I had promised the Hong Kong Scottish Cricket section organizer, Arnie, that if the club's first cricket tour was greenlit, I would make every effort to be there. So when I was told that a tour to Chiang Mai to participate in the annual Gymkhana Club Cricket Sixes tournament was happening, I was immediately in.
I decided to fly in a few days early to beat the jet lag and take in some of Chiang Mai. I was also lucky enough to have my sister with me, as she had flown in from Hong Kong so we could spend some quality time together. I have been to Thailand twice before, both times to Phuket, so I was fairly familiar with the country BUT, Chiang Mai blew me away. I have always been more of a mountain or countryside person than a beach person so this was right up my alley. I loved the mountainous surroundings, the hustle and bustle of the city, the friendly nature of the locals and of course... the food!
During the week we visited temples such as Wat Chedi Luang, Wat Chet Lin, Wat Umong Suan Putthatham and Doi Suthep among others. The beautiful Hmong Doi Pui Village was one of the highlights of the entire trip for me, as was visiting the royal Bhubing Palace. We managed to watch a couple of Muay Thai events as well and visited a few local markets. I love indulging in local cuisines whenever I travel and Chiang Mai was no different. I ate more Khao Soi than my stomach could handle and drank about a thousand mango smoothies.
Right, on to the cricket. The Gymkhana Club Cricket Sixes is an annual event held at the Chiang Mai Gymkhana Club. It is usually held in November and sees teams made up of players from all over the world compete. This year saw nine teams take part: Hong Kong Scottish, Koh Chang, Shrewsbury Sloggers, Black Swans, Alibaba, Lamphun, TJCDF (Thai Junior Cricket Development Fund), Pattaya CC and Lanna CC. The tournament helps raise funds to help the development of junior cricket in Thailand and is a popular event for teams looking to tour.
Each team played four group stage matches after which the top eight sides made it through to the playoffs. Unfortunately we lost all our games! But this really wasn't a big deal as we all had a fantastic time at the tournament and was it not for our wayward bowling we definitely would have finished higher up on the log.
It was a great tournament for me personally, though, as I managed to be named the HKS player of the tournament, so I'll take that! However, to me, it wasn't about where we finished on the log or our overall performance. It was about playing cricket in Thailand, with a bunch of my mates who have helped me rekindle my love for the game I grew up playing. I genuinely could not have asked for a better group of blokes to play with and will cherish the memories of this trip for life.
