Achievers Cricket Academy, conducted free cricket selection trials for girls between U14 to U23 age group on the morning of 10th September at Fatima High School in Vidyavihar. Determined bundle of athletes turned up and put their best food forward in order to make the cut. The election at this stage will provide these young female cricketers direct access to the MCA Card and a foot into state level cricket for Mumbai. The Mumbai Cricket Association card specifically holds great value in the world of sport, as it exposes athletes to friendly and private tournaments administered by MCA itself. On the heels of that, ACA, which takes great pride in being one of the finest cricket academies in Mumbai, has established a well-structured plan for the shortlisted players, including numbers practise session, practise matches, training for MCA selections and scholarships too.
Undoubtedly, Women Cricket is flourishing in India, all credits to the supreme level initiatives taken by BCCI. The effects of which are clearly permeating down to the grassroots levels of the country. On-ground reporters Anushka Gupta and Princy Surana, were awestruck by the thickness of the crowd that flooded the backyards of Fatima School, specifically built to facilitate net practise for cricketers. Be it Avani Sapariya from Vidyavihar or Meenakshi Mahargude from Navi Mumbai, all the girls showed phenomenal calibre and character on the field.
Despite the seemingly insurmountable contrast between Men and Women cricket, the BCCI Individuals in power are aggressively taking seminal decisions to bridge the gap without batting an eyelid, right from Women’s IPL to introducing the Under 16 category. Prashant Goyal, D.Y Patil Sports Academy Player and Fast Bowling Coach at ACA, has assured that the much-hyped Women’s IPL will turn into reality by the next year and is affirmative that this format will surely attract global recognition. Building on that, Head Coach Ashok Kadam broke it down into an iconic one-liner “The more the matches, the more the progression. Five years down the line, there will be no difference between Men’s and Women’s cricket.” Taking into account the levels to which it is rising, fitness and nutrition can no longer be put on the back burner.
Quoting Subramanian Doraiswamy, the BCCI Level ‘A’ Coach and former Mumbai Ranji Trophy Player, “Since it gets difficult to monitor the consumption of each and every player in the academy setup, ACA has developed a “High Performance Clinic” wherein we select kids who we feel are in position to go up to the next level. This program covers everything from nutrition knowledge, sports psychology, regular fitness tests and performance video analysis. However, change begins at home, so we coaches try to inculcate the importance of balanced diet and fitness in family’s minds as well, so that they can keep a regular tab of what the athlete is eating.”
The coaches, when asked about their personal favourite players, did not shy away from showering praises upon Jemimah Rodrigues and Virat Kohli. The character and ambition that these athletes bring onto the field, is for generations to follow.
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The Event was covered & article was submitted by:
Princy Surana & Anushka Gupta
