John Ovia is a Papua New Guinean cricketer

Cricketer

A cricketer is a person who plays the sport of cricket. Official and long-established cricket publications prefer the traditional word "cricketer" over the rarely used term "cricket player"....

. A right-handed batsman and right-arm off spin

Off spin

Off spin is a type of bowling in the sport of cricket which is bowled by an off spinner, a right-handed spin bowler who uses his or her fingers and/or wrist to spin the ball from a right-handed batsman's off side to the leg side...

 bowler, he has played for the Papua New Guinea national cricket team since the 1997 ICC Trophy

1997 ICC Trophy

The Carlsberg 1997 ICC Trophy was a cricket tournament played in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in March/April 1997. It was the qualification tournament for the 1999 Cricket World Cup. Kenya and for the first time Bangladesh and Scotland all Qualified.-First round:...

. His wife Hebou Morea has played for the Papua New Guinea women's team.

Career

John Ovia first played for Papua New Guinea in the 1997 ICC Trophy. In his debut against Italy, he scored 94 runs and won the man of the match

Man of the match

In sport, a Man of the Match or Player of the Game or Man of the Series award is given to the outstanding player, almost always the one who makes the most impact, in a particular match or series. The term was originally used more often in cricket before being adopted by other sports. This can be a...

 as Papua New Guinea won the match by 101 runs. He played in four more matches in the tournament, including the 13th place play-off against Singapore, which Papua New Guinea won. The following year, he played in the ACC Trophy

ACC Trophy

The ACC Trophy or Asian Cricket Council Trophy is a one-day cricket tournament organised by the Asian Cricket Council for the non-test nations in Asia...

 against Singapore and Malaysia.

In 2001, he represented his country in the Pacifica Cup

Pacifica Cup

The Pacifica Cup was an international cricket tournament contested in 2001 and 2002 by teams from the Pacific Islands.-First round:The eight participating teams were divided into two pools of four teams for the first round.-Pool A:...

, taking 3/31 in the third place play-off against Tonga to secure the third place spot in the tournament. This was followed by his second ICC Trophy

ICC Trophy

The ICC World Cup Qualifier is an international one-day cricket tournament run under the auspices of the International Cricket Council. Any Associate or Affiliate member of the ICC may attempt to qualify for the ICC Trophy by means of a system of regional qualifying events. The test-playing Full...

, the 2001 tournament

2001 ICC Trophy

The 2001 ICC Trophy was a cricket tournament played in Ontario, Canada in 2001. It was the qualifying tournament for the 2003 Cricket World Cup...

 in Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

. In 2002, he played in the second Pacifica Cup, top scoring in the final against Tonga to help Papua New Guinea win the tournament. The following year, he played in the cricket tournament

Cricket at the 2003 South Pacific Games

Cricket at the 2003 South Pacific Games was contested by six teams. The gold medal was won by Papua New Guinea.-First round:The six participating teams were placed into one pool. Papua New Guinea won all five of their matches, including a match against New Caledonia where they scored more than 500...

 at the 2003 South Pacific Games

2003 South Pacific Games

The 2003 Pacific Games were held in Suva, Fiji from 28 June to 12 July 2003. They are also known as the XII South Pacific Games.The Games were the 12th Pacific Games to be held since the event's inception and were the 40th anniversary of their beginnings in 1963. It was also the third time in the...

, top-scoring in the final against Fiji to pick up a gold medal. The following year, he represented a combined East Asia/Pacific team in the Australian national country championships, and has played in the tournament every year since.

In 2005, he played for Papua New Guinea at the repêchage tournament for the 2005 ICC Trophy

2005 ICC Trophy

Ireland beat Bermuda easily as Ed Joyce made 103 for the hosts in Stormont.----Denmark beat Uganda by 28 runs as Thomas Munkholt Hansen took 6 for 30 to carry Denmark to a 28-run win over Uganda in Muckamore. Denmark made 197 with Henrik Saxe Hansen making 71...

. Papua New Guinea beat Fiji in the final, to qualify for the 2005 ICC Trophy in Ireland

Ireland

Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...

, where Ovia made his List A debut against the Netherlands.

In 2007, Ovia played for Papua New Guinea at Division Three

2007 ICC World Cricket League Division Three

The 2007 ICC World Cricket League Division Three was a cricket tournament played in Darwin, Australia between 27 May and 2 June 2007. The tournament formed part of the qualification structure for the 2011 World Cup as well as part of the wider ICC World Cricket League.At the end of the tournament,...

 of the World Cricket League

World Cricket League

The ICC World Cricket League is a series of international one-day cricket tournaments for national teams without Test status, administered by the International Cricket Council. All associate and affiliate members of the ICC are eligible to compete in the league system, which features a promotion...

 in Darwin

Darwin, Northern Territory

Darwin is the capital city of the Northern Territory, Australia. Situated on the Timor Sea, Darwin has a population of 127,500, making it by far the largest and most populated city in the sparsely populated Northern Territory, but the least populous of all Australia's capital cities...

, Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

. He most recently played for them in the cricket tournament

Cricket at the 2007 South Pacific Games

Cricket at the 2007 South Pacific Games was contested by five teams. Papua New Guinea won the gold medal, Fiji won the silver, and Samoa won the bronze. Tonga and New Caledonia were the other participating nations.-Tournament:...

 at the 2007 South Pacific Games, though he missed Papua New Guinea's record-breaking win over New Caledonia

New Caledonia cricket team

The New Caledonia cricket team is the team that represents the French overseas territory of New Caledonia in international cricket matches. They are not currently a member of the International Cricket Council, though they have taken part in various regional tournaments such as the Pacifica Cup and...

, picking up a second South Pacific Games

South Pacific Games

The Pacific Games is a multi-sport event, much like the Olympics , with participation exclusively from countries around the South Pacific. It is held every four years and began in 1963, hosted by Suva, Fiji.- Concept :The idea of holding the South Pacific Games originated with Dr A.H...

gold medal.