The Belgium national cricket team represents Belgium in international cricket. The team is organised by the Belgian Cricket Federation, which has been an associate member of the International Cricket Council (ICC) since 2005 (and previously an affiliate member, from 1991).Belgium at CricketArchive Belgium played its first international match in 1910, in an exhibition tournament in Brussels that also featured France, the Netherlands, and the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC). Since the 1990s, the team has regularly competed in European Cricket Council (ECC) tournaments, usually in the lower divisions.Other matches played by Belgium – CricketArchive. Retrieved 13 September 2015.
History
Beginnings
The first game of modern cricket in Belgium appears to have been a match played by British soldiers before the Battle of Waterloo in 1815, though research has suggested that cricket may be related to a game exported from Flanders to England in the 16th century.Cricket 'was invented in Belgium' Mason, Chris; BBC News; 2 March 2009 The first record of organised cricket is a painting dated 1870 that hangs in the pavilion of Lord's Cricket Ground in London that depicts the opening of the Brussels cricket ground in 1866 by mayor Jules Anspach.History of Belgian Cricket at the official site of the Belgian Cricket Federation
The national team first played a match in 1905 when they played against the Netherlands. The match was played almost every year until 1986. Belgium hosted a tournament as part of the 1910 Brussels Exhibition also involving France, the MCC and the Netherlands.Brussels Exhibition Tournament 1910 at Cricket Archive Belgium lost their match against the MCC by an inningsScorecard of Belgium v MCC, 20 June 1910 at Cricket Archive and lost to the Netherlands by 116 runs.Scorecard of Belgium v Netherlands, 25 June 1910 at Cricket Archive
ICC membership
Belgium became an affiliate member of the ICC in 1991. They began to play in European tournaments, playing in the ECC Trophy for the first time in 1999 when they finished last.1999 ECC Trophy at the official site of the European Cricket Council They fared better in the next tournament, reaching the semi-finals of the 2001 ECC Trophy in Austria.2001 ECC Trophy at the official site of the European Cricket Council
They finished sixth in the ECC Trophy in 2003,2003 ECC Trophy at the official site of the European Cricket Council and gained associate membership of the ICC two years later. Belgium finished fourth in the European Affiliates Championship in 20052005 European Affiliates Championship at the official site of the European Cricket Council and both played and hosted Division Three of the newly restructured European Championship in August 2007, they finished fifth.2007 European Championship Division Three at the official site of the European Cricket Council
In 2009, Belgium played in La Manga Club Ground, again in Division 3. Richard Nash captained the team and finished fourth. In 2011, Belgium hosted the new 2011 ICC European T20 Championship Division Two where they won the championship undefeated. The captain for the T20 squad was André Wagener. Belgium got promoted to Division 1 where they finished a credible 7th out of 12 teams having fielded a weakened team because of visa issues. Their performance qualified them for the WCL 8 qualifier the following year.
In 2012, Belgium played the World Cricket League 8 Qualifier in La Manga Club Ground where they beat Gibraltar, Austria and France to qualify for the World Cricket league for the first time. Captained by Sheriyar Butt and Simon Newport in this tournament, they will travel to Samoa in September. On 31 July, the Under-19 Belgium Cricket Team (Aadit Sheth, Aaryan Mehta, Raj Sanghvi, Sabhya Jain, Burhan Niaz, Shaan Shah, Dev Jogani, Aarjav Jain, Alex Uzupris, Theodore Develodore, Aamad Ali Rehman, Rehaan Shah and Zeeshan Diwan Ali), travelled to Essex to participate in the U19 Cricket World Cup Qualifier Europe Division 2.
2018-Present In April 2018, the ICC decided to grant full Twenty20 International (T20I) status to all its members. Therefore, all Twenty20 matches played between Belgium and other ICC members after 1 January 2019 will be a full T20I. Belgium played their first Twenty20 International on 11 May 2019 against Germany.
In August 2020, Belgium won the 2020 Luxembourg T20I Trophy tournament, after winning all four matches they played in.
Tournament history
ICC Cricket World Cup Cricket World Cup recordsYearRoundPositionWin% 1975 Did not participate 1979 Did not qualify 1983 1987 1992 1996 1999 2003 2007 2011 2015 2019 2023 2027 TBD 2031Total0 medals0/1300000 ICC T20 World Cup Men's T20 World Cup recordsYearRoundPositionWin% 2007 Did not qualify 2009 2010 2012 2014 2016 2021 2022 2024 2026 2028 TBD 2030Total0 medals0/1000000 European Affiliates Championship
One-Day 1999: 7th place 2001: Semi-finals 2003: 6th place 2005: 4th place 2007: 5th place2007 European Affiliates Championship at the official site of the European Cricket Council (remaining in division 3) 2009: 4th place (remaining il division 3) 2012: 1st place World Cricket League 8 qualifier. Tournament in September in Samoa. T20 2011: 1st Place Division 2 T20 World Cup Qualifier. 2011: 7th place Division 1 T20 World Cup Qualifier.
Current squad Updated as of 26 May 2024
This lists all the players who have played for Belgium in the past 12 months or has been part of the latest T20I squad.
Name Age Batting style Bowling style Notes Batters Shaheryar Butt Right-handed Right-arm off break Muhammad Muneeb Left-handed Right-arm leg break Manzoor Malangzai Right-handed Right-arm medium All-rounders Saber Zakhil Right-handed Right-arm medium Burhan Niaz Right-handed Right-arm medium Sheraz Sheikh Right-handed Slow left-arm orthodox Vice-captain Faisal Khaliq Right-handed Right-arm medium Dumon Dewald Right-handed Right-arm leg break Wicket-keepers Ali Raza Right-handed Captain Omid Rahimi Right-handed Spin Bowler Ravi Thapliyal Left-handed Slow left-arm orthodox Pace Bowlers Khalid Ahmadi Right-handed Right-arm medium Sajad Ahmadzai Right-handed Right-arm medium Adnan Razzaq Right-handed Right-arm medium Zaki Shah Right-handed Right-arm medium Abduljabar Jabarkhail Right-handed Left-arm medium
International grounds
Ground City Region Capacity Matches hosted Notes Royal Brussels Cricket Club Waterloo Walloon Brabant 1500 T20Is, ICC events Main international ground; hosted ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Europe Qualifiers Stars Arena Zemst Flemish Brabant 600 T10s, domestic & ECS matches Modern facility; used for European Cricket Series Belgium and club competitions
Records and statistics
International Match Summary — Belgium
Last updated 14 July 2026 Playing Record Format M W L T NR Inaugural Match Twenty20 Internationals 66 39 26 1 0 11 May 2019
Twenty20 International Belgium's highest score: 233/6 v Malta, 11 June 2022 at Ghent Oval, Meersen, Ghent. Highest individual score: 125*, Shaheryar Butt v Czech Republic, 29 August 2020 at Pierre Werner Cricket Ground, Walferdange. Best bowling figures in an innings: 4/8, Burman Niaz v Malta, 8 July 2021 at Marsa Sports Club, Marsa.
Most T20I runs for Belgium PlayerRunsAverageCareer spanShaheryer Butt 1,226 30.65 2019–2026Saber Zakhil 1,195 27.79 2019–2026Muhammad Muneeb 970 23.65 2020–2025Burhan Niaz 811 22.52 2021–2026Aziz Mohammad 711 26.33 2019–2026
Most T20I wickets for Belgium PlayerWicketsAverageCareer spanKhalid Ahmadi 74 14.62 2020–2026Zaki Ul Hassan 32 17.15 2019–2026Murid Ekrami 30 24.00 2019–2026Ravi Thapliyal 27 15.07 2023–2026
T20I record versus other nations
Records complete to T20I #4032. Last updated 14 July 2026. Opponent M W L T NR First match First win vs Associate Members 12 4 8 0 0 24 July 2021 24 July 2021 1 0 1 0 0 8 July 2024 2 2 0 0 0 29 August 2020 29 August 2020 1 1 0 0 0 1 July 2022 1 July 2022 4 2 1 1 0 10 May 2024 12 May 2024 7 0 7 0 0 11 May 2019 2 2 0 0 0 28 June 2022 28 June 2022 4 2 2 0 0 8 June 2024 8 June 2024 4 4 0 0 0 29 June 2022 29 June 2022 1 0 1 0 0 10 July 2024 2 2 0 0 0 29 August 2020 29 August 2020 13 11 2 0 0 8 July 2021 8 July 2021 4 1 3 0 0 2 July 2022 1 June 2025 4 3 1 0 0 29 June 2025 29 June 2025 2 2 0 0 0 12 July 2024 12 July 2024 1 1 0 0 0 4 July 2022 4 July 2022 2 2 0 0 0 7 July 2024 7 July 2024
See also EUT20 Belgium List of Belgium Twenty20 International cricketers
References