DeWitt Clinton junior Rifat Hussain dreamed about playing competitive cricket in the Bronx when his family left Bangladesh a year ago. He joined informal pickup games in the city parks with his friends.

Then, in early April, he got to put on a uniform and compete, when he and 16 of his classmates played their first match in the inaugural season of the Public School Athletic League’s (PSAL) new cricket league.

“Their needs have been met, and they are having a great time,” said Clinton head cricket coach Ray Ramirez, who grew up playing baseball in the Dominican Republic and had never played cricket before this season. “It’s part of their culture, and they are a lot prouder of themselves.”

Senior and team captain Mohammed Arslan started a campaign to form a cricket team at Clinton two years ago. He had been playing for a team at the Primrose Cricket Club on White Plains Road.

Eric Goldstein, who oversees sports programs for the Department of Education (DOE), noticed the rising number of people playing cricket in the city parks over the past few years. It’s estimated that 650 adults play in the city’s six cricket leagues, and many more play informally.

When this interest was tested at public high schools last year, the DOE found there were enough students to field 15 teams across four boroughs. When announcing the league earlier this year, the DOE said that New York is the only public school system in the nation to offer competitive cricket.

“There was a lot of demand, and I think we tapped into this demand, which really was the result of a lot of new immigrant groups coming to New York,” Goldstein said.

Cricket originated in England and was carried around the world to its colonies in South Asia, Africa, and the West Indies. In New York City, the number of immigrants from cricket-wealthy nations, especially Bangladesh, is on the rise. In fact from 1990 to 2000, the city’s Bangladeshi population exploded by 471 percent.

Bangladeshis are the largest nationality of Asian-born New Yorkers in the Bronx, as well. Many Bangladeshis have been moving to Bronx sections like Norwood and Parkchester for years because, according to Mohammed Kavir, a member of the Organization of Bangladesh Americans, “currently, living in the Bronx is much cheaper than any other borough in New York City.”

The Clinton cricket team has players from Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Jamaica. Some have played on the Clinton soccer, swimming, volleyball, or football teams while most are enjoying their first interscholastic playing experience.

“This team is a mix of different people and different cultures all coming together,” said Hussain, a team vice captain.

“It’s a good experience; we’re one big happy family,” said senior Daneon Simpson from Jamaica.

Clinton and Herbert H. Lehman High School are the only two Bronx high schools with cricket teams.

Clinton ended its regular season with an 8-4 record. Clinton received the eighth seed in the playoffs, where last Saturday they defeated the top seeded and undefeated Franklin D. Roosevelt High School from Brooklyn, 116-115. Although Ramirez called the victory “a total team effort” he credited two players, Arslan and sophomore Kamran Chowdhury, with leading the team by scoring the most offensive points in the tight upset. Junior Mohammed Hossain scored the winning run.

The team then advanced to the semi-final round where they took on the fifth-seeded John Adams High School (8-4) Tuesday evening at Baisley Pond Park in Queens. The teams had split their regular season series with one win each. The winner, unknown at press time, advanced to the championship game, which will be played this Saturday.

No matter how their season ends, all involved are happy with the way the first ever cricket season played out.

Said Hossain, “I made good friends, had a good experience, got to know more people, and improved my skills.”