Winnipeg Wolves climbing cricket ranks

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This article was published 03/06/2025 (185 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Cricket is becoming one of the fastest-growing sports in Canada, and Manitoba is no exception. In the past five years alone, the number of cricket teams in the province has more than doubled, according to Paramjit Shahi, president of the Manitoba Cricket Association.

With now 69 teams registered under the MCA in Winnipeg alone, along with six teams in Brandon, and others based in Selkirk, Portage La Prairie, Winkler and Steinbach, players are swinging their cricket bats all across the province.

One of those 69 teams is the Winnipeg Wolves, a newer squad captained by Wasi Hassan, that has already found success in the MCA competition.

Hassan, originally from Pakistan and born and raised in Saudi Arabia, began playing cricket in high school. He played on and off after graduating, but took a break when he moved to Winnipeg eight years ago. It wasn’t until about four years ago that he picked it up again and rediscovered his passion.

“About three years ago, a few of us came together with the idea of starting our own club,” said Hassan. “A bunch of us used to play for different teams at one point but then we sat down and said we should have our own cricket club.”

When a new team registers with the MCA, they start in the lowest tier and can move up by winning their division. There are currently six divisions in total, with the Elite Division at the top, featuring nine of the province’s best teams.

The Wolves, officially established in 2023, are on the rise, winning the Division 3 championship in 2024 and now competing in Division 2 this season alongside 14 other teams.

“I have about 14 or 15 players in the team and my role as captain goes beyond setting the field, making the batting order,” said Hassan. “It’s about creating the right mindset for the team. I typically focus on keeping the group focused, united, motivated and ready to back each other up no matter what the situation is.”

“It’s a way to stay rooted to their culture while building something new here.”– Winnipeg Wolves captain Wasi Hassan

So far in the 2025 MCA season, Hassan’s strategy has paid off as the Wolves have won three of their first four games of a 12-game season.

“We’re staying focused with every intention to go in for the title again,” Hassan said.

Shahi noted that there are approximately 2000 registered players in the MCA, but thousands more who play recreationally or softball cricket.

He says that these numbers have grown significantly post-COVID as more international students and immigrants move to Winnipeg.

“There are lots of benefits,” said Hassan. “It’s not just about the technique and skills, it improves your physical fitness, it sharpens your mental focus, it develops patience, helps you make decisions under pressure.”

For immigrants new to the province, the benefits of the sport extend to helping them feel a sense of home and belonging.

“It’s a way to stay rooted to their culture while building something new here,” said Hassan.

“They feel like they are at home,” said Shahi. “Sports bring everyone, all the new immigrants together, where they can share their culture, their sports, their hobbies. And the young kids who are coming with the parents, they don’t feel homesick, they have a place, they have the game they love, right from their childhood.”

“They feel like they are at home. Sports bring everyone, all the new immigrants together, where they can share their culture, their sports, their hobbies.”– Paramjit Shahi, president of the Manitoba Cricket Association

But with the rise in the sport’s popularity in the city, finding enough cricket pitches to accommodate the many games and practices has become a challenge.

“We are having a hard time booking our grounds within the city,” said Shahi. “We are looking for exclusive use grounds, like we have three at (La Barriere Park). We will spend the money, all we need is space from the City of Winnipeg.”

Shahi hopes to add a fourth cricket pitch at La Barriere Park, which is about six kilometres from the Perimeter Highway on the outskirts of southwest Winnipeg.

Last spring, construction began on $1.6 million worth of upgrades at Assiniboine Park to redesign the existing field near the southeast entrance on Diversity Drive. The project will create two full-sized cricket pitches, including turf replacement and the installation of a new irrigation system. Active play is expected to resume in 2026, according to the Assiniboine Park Conservancy.

“Once that is built, we might bring national-level tournaments and maybe international level cricket games to Winnipeg,” said Shahi.

The Wolves currently play their games at Waverley Ground and La Barriere Park. Their next match goes June 29 at 9 a.m. at La Barriere Park Pitch 1.

zoe.pierce@freepress.mb.ca