ICC announces Olympic gymnast Farah Ann Abdul Hadi as U19 Women's T20 World Cup event ambassador

Having led the charge for Malaysian sport as one of her country's premier gymnasts, Farah Ann is ready to roll up her sleeves and help her homeland fall in love with sport all over again.

“It’s such an honour to be a part of this exciting tournament. I’m so thrilled to watch the matches and to watch young women making their mark on the international stage," she said.

“It’s such an interesting opportunity for me. Malaysia has been doing a lot with women in sport. I’ve been working a lot with the gymnastics community so, to have that translate into a different sport and build up interest in different sports for women all over, in all capacities, is just wonderful.

“The one thing that Malaysia does really well is support their team. So, I’m really excited for the Malaysian people to come out and support the women athletes and support the whole competition. It’s very exciting for the Malaysian public to see firsthand an international competition like the U19 Women’s T20 World Cup."

Cricket has seen a surge in popularity across the globe in recent years, with the sport set to make its Olympic debut at the 2028 Los Angeles Summer Olympic Games. As no stranger to the spotlight herself after appearing at the 2020 edition in Tokyo, Farah Ann is convinced cricket will more than rise to the occasion in three years' time.

She added: “I think that it really says a lot that cricket is now included in the Olympics. It means that the support for the game has reached every corner of the world and is ready to return to the Games. Many people enjoy cricket and the Olympics is the pinnacle for sport and these two things come together perfectly.

“Taking part in the Olympics was the pinnacle of my career. It was the moment where I got to say thank you to everyone that was supporting me my entire life and that all our hard work has paid off. It was a stamp of pride to say I put in all the work and effort and now I'm able to be there and it was just the most wonderful experience.

“Sport is about competing but it’s also about community and being there for each other. I hope that I can transfer the lessons that I learned at the Olympics to the players I meet during the World Cup.

“It is an honour to represent your country in a global competition and this is the biggest stage that most of the players would have played on until this point in their young lives, it is an exciting and nervous time, and I wish them all the very best of luck as they look to become champions by the end of the tournament.”

ICC Chief Executive, Geoff Allardice said: “As the ICC, we are proud to deliver the second edition of the ICC U19 Women’s T20 World Cup in Malaysia. The tournament is a celebration of the future stars of our game and a vital step forward in the pathway to their success as professional cricketers.

"Malaysia is a respected emerging cricket nation and we hope that their hosting of this event will encourage even further participation, reaching new fans as their own national team makes its first mark in the tournament.

“Farah Ann Abdul Hadi is a well-respected and highly accomplished gymnast and has represented our tournament host country Malaysia, with distinction and pride. We are delighted to have her as the official ambassador of the tournament as such a good example of excellence and determination."

India will look to defend their championship as one of sixteen teams from around the world who will take part in the 41-match event across four venues in Malaysia, where the future stars of women’s cricket will announce themselves over 15 days of competition from January 18 to February 2, 2025.