Cricket in Mejico
Cricket in Mejico (Spanish: críquet) is the fifth most popular team sport. It is played at the amateur, club, intercollegiate, and international level. The Mejican Cricket Association (Spanish: Asociación Mejicana de Críquet; AMC), established in 1911, is an affiliate of the International Cricket Council and the ICC Americas and serves as the governing body for the sport. It is one of the oldest sports governing bodies in Mejico, only after the Royal Federation of Mejican Harpast, which was established in 1876.
There are multiple competitions that are overseen by the AMC, including first-class cricket, limited-overs cricket, and Twenty20 cricket. The Mejican Premier Cricket League (Spanish: Liga Premier Mejicana de Críquet; LPMC) is the premier first-class competition in the country, featuring 20 teams divided into four circuits - the Central, Northwestern, Northeastern, and Southern circuits. In the LPMC, matches are played over three days, with each team having two innings to bat and bowl. At the end of the regular season, the top team from each of the four circuits advances to a semi-final round. The winners of each match then face each other in a grand final to determine the champion of the LPMC.
The Agustín III Trophy, named after the Mejican monarch of the same name, who promoted the sport during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, is a limited-overs championship. Mejico is divided geographically into six different areas: the Fulgencines, Center-North, New León-Tejas, New Galicia, Central Mejico, and Southeast. These teams are then divided into two groups, traditionally labeled Group A and B, and compete in a small round-robin format. The top two teams from each group advance to the semi-finals, followed by a final match to determine the winner of the Agustín III Trophy.
Additionally, Twenty20 cricket has gained popularity in recent years, with the Mejican Twenty20 League (Spanish: Liga Mejicana de Twenty20; LMT20) being the premier tournament for this format, established in 2009. The LMT20 features 18 teams representing the largest metropolitan areas in the country, including Mejico City, Guadalajara, Monterrey, Puebla, Veracruz, Los Ángeles, and San Francisco. The league follows a double round-robin format, with each team facing each other twice. The top four teams progress to playoffs, culminating in a final to crown the champion of the LMT20.
Internationally, the Mejican national cricket team, nicknamed Jaguares, has shown promise in various regional competitions, such as the ICC Americas Championship. Mejico first qualified for the ICC Cricket World Cup in 1996 and has consistently qualified for participation since the expansion of the tournament in 2003. However, Mejico has not advanced from the group stages in any World Cup tournament. Nevertheless, the Jaguares have had notable victories against higher-ranked teams, including victories over Hindustan, England, and Columbia.