| Cricket in Hong Kong is played during the cooler months of the year, from September to April. Although there are numerous clubs playing cricket, not all clubs possess their own grounds and/or facilities. There are three grass wickets available in the territory, at the Hong Kong Cricket Club, the Kowloon Cricket Club and at Mission Road (from October 2009). All other matches are played on artificial surfaces at Hong Kong University, Police Training College, Po Kong Villiage Road and Kai Tak (from November 209).
For the men, there are two main competitions - one played on Saturdays and the other played on Sundays. Junior cricket is played at Under-13, Under-15, Under-17 and Under-19 age levels and there are also various inter-school competitions played at primary school and secondary school levels. For more details on Junior Cricket, please visit the HKCA's Junior Cricket website at www.crick-kid.com.
The Saturday League competition comprises 19 teams that play each other in 35 overs per side matches. Each team plays 12 matches in a preliminary competition, with the top eight teams advancing to a play-off phase of the competition. At the conclusion of the Saturday League competition, and if grounds and time permits, the Saturday Cup is played. The Saturday Cup is a knock-out competition played following Twenty20 format.
The Sunday League competition is more serious, with 11 teams play one another on a home and away basis in 50 overs per side matches, following ICC International rules. The Sunday Cup knock-out competition is played after the Sunday League is completed, with winning teams advancing to the next phase of the competition.
In 2008-09, the HKCA introduced a four-team Super League competition involving teams from each of the two main clubs, Hong Kong Cricket Club and Kowloon Cricket Club and two teams made up from players from Independent Clubs. The competition format generally follows the rules of the HKCA Sunday League.
For women, the HKCA Women's League has been played since the 2004-05 since. Matches are usually played on Sundays and following similar competition rules to the men's HKCA Saturday League. In the 2008-09 season, teams introduced coloured uniforms and games were played with white balls. A knock-out competition is also played at the conclusion of the league competition.
The Challenge League is also played throughout the year for non-league teams.
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