Better exposure, infrastructure need of the hour; BCCI focused on developing cricket in region which will be home to sixth NCA
SHILLONG: The boys from the North East are at par with their counterparts from across the country when it came to commitment and enthusiasm and there is no reason why some of them should not be playing in the famed Indian Premier League or even for the National team any time soon. These encouraging words came from none other than former India pacer Venkatesh Prasad and Honorary Joint Secretary of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), Amitabh Choudhary, who are in the city for a National Cricket Academy camp organised to select budding cricketers to train in the upcoming Zonal Cricket Academy in the region.
Prasad and Choudhury were specifically referring to young cricketers from Meghalaya, Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur and Sikkim.
“The focus of the BCCI now is to nurture cricket and provide exposure to young players from the NE states and we are sure that things will change for the better soon,” the duo said while speaking to a select group of media persons in the city on Sunday evening.
Also present in the interaction were MCA honorary secretary, Naba Bhattacharjee, who is also a coordinator of the BCCI’s NADP Committee, and Gyanendra Pandey, a member of the junior selection committee of the BCCI, besides other officials of the state association.
It may be mentioned that the selection trials for the U-19 category were held in Shillong while that of the U-16 category was held in Dimapur, Nagaland.
Prasad, Choudhary and others were personally present to oversee the proceedings to give a boost to the entire camp and altogether 25 budding cricketers, out of the 60 who attended the trials, made the cut to the Zonal Cricket Academy where they will get an opportunity to hone their skills further.
Such camps will be regular affair now, said Naba Bhattacharjee who, sources say, has been instrumental in getting the who’s who of Indian cricket to this part of the country to have a look at the youngsters.
Another reason to for budding cricketers to cheer is that the last board meeting of the NCA decided to dedicate a sixth such academy to the five Northeastern states in order to generate enthusiasm for the game in this part of the country.
At present there are five NCAs with the main centre being in Bengaluru.
“The BCCI is determined to ensure that inputs required to convert talent to international standards are offered to the region,” Choudhary said.
It was also learn that the sixth NCA was slated to come up either in Shillong or Guwahati.
Prasad, who is known for his unplayable leg cutters, said that there is no dearth of talent in this part of the country however, there is an urgent need to develop infrastructure and ensure better exposure for the youngsters to shine at the highest level.
“Proper coaching, better infrastructure and more competitive cricket are the way out,” said Prasad, who is currently the chairman of the junior selection committee of the BCCI.
The former pacer, known for his exploits against famed batsmen like Pakistan great, Saeed Anwar among others, said that though football was a very popular game in this part of the country, cricket will create its own space and shine without doubt.