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USA Cricketer
February 2011 - Posts
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Now, you can get all the USA Cricket updates via Facebook. Also follow us on Twitter via @dreamcricket
By Venu Palaparthi
In a 2009 editorial column on the right to vote, I wrote: "Not having proportionate voting poses several issues for USACA such as fragmentation and lack of cohesion."
"Ensuring that all free persons are proportionately represented is something that even the founding fathers of America had to guarantee, which is why congressional house seats are apportioned by counting the whole number of persons."
The ongoing drama in the NW and SW regions has me convinced that the question of franchise remains one of the most contentious issues facing USA cricket today. And I have no doubt that this topic is going to consume a lot of bandwidth, especially with the coming elections for regional and national boards.
Deconstructing the vote
For starters, the USACA grants a vote to full member leagues that are in good standing. Deconstructing that sentence, in order to be able to vote, a league should have had at least eight (8) clubs or teams, each club or team comprising at least fifteen (15) players who play according to a published schedule, and the cricket is played in accordance with the Laws of Cricket established by MCC and Playing Conditions established by ICC.
By this definition, a wide variety of leagues such as indoor cricket leagues, taped ball leagues, heavy tennis ball leagues, sixes leagues, etc., are not entitled to a vote because they do not play according to the Laws of Cricket. The constitution rightly offers these types of leagues an opportunity to become associate members, not full members.
Most outdoor hard ball leagues with eight or more clubs are eligible to become full members, provided they meet two additional requirements. Firstly, the league should be approved by USACA as a full member, which means it should have undergone a period of one year as a provisional league. And secondly, the constitution has provisions for financial eligibility and good standing, which we will come to in just a bit.
The spirit of the rules
In spirit, if not in letter, when the constitution says 'pursuant to a schedule' the constitution expects the eight clubs to participate in the same league competition. And in spirit, if not in letter, there is an expectation that each club or team comprises 15 unique individuals.
As an illustration, a league may have a T20 contest with four participating teams and a separate 40-over competition with four reconstituted teams comprising the same individuals. This does not become a 8-club league just because, based on the optics, it looks like it has 8 teams.
The other thing the constitution does not touch upon is age-group cricket. Trying to apply the definition of a league to age-group cricket is like trying to place a square peg in a round hole. As an illustration, if a junior league conducts an U-13 competition, an U-15 competition and an U-17 competition, and each competition comprises 3 teams, does it qualify as a full-member league with 9 teams? Let me make that more interesting. What if 50% of the boys in the U-17 teams also participate in U-15 competitions since they are below 15 years of age?
Not only does this pose a logistical challenge, it also leads to the philosophical quetion of whether youth cricket leagues should be sheltered from the political arena. I have argued in the past and I still maintain that youth cricket could use a lot less politics and a greater degree of involvement and mentoring by the clubs and leagues. However, the current reality is that the entire junior cricket system - from tryouts to the playing eleven - is infused with conflict.
In other cricketing nations, youth activities are an integral part of regular club-level and league-level activities, so the system, while not exactly conflict-free, works differently. In USA, given the dismal track record of involvement in junior cricket by clubs, leagues or even regions, I am not at all surprised to see junior cricket programs and academies staking out more direct claims by wanting to become full-member leagues. However, I do not endorse these claims. [For the record, four junior cricket organizations, including DreamCricket Academy, remain associate members with no voting privileges.]
A list of leagues
I recently met with an individual who told me he was contemplating a run for the USACA board. We discussed the challenges and opportunities facing USACA and he seemed to have a well thought-out plan for resolving some of the most challenging issues. But he had a more immediate and tactical problem - he was struggling to find an authoritative list of leagues that are voting-eligible.
After the meeting, I embarked on an exercise to identify the voting-eligible leagues. The list of USACA members in the 'Regional Administrations' section of USACA.org provides a starting point. According to this list, there are 44 USACA full-member leagues in USA (excluding Michigan Cricket Association, which, in case you are wondering, is listed as an Associate Member).
At first glance, this list appears to be incomplete. At the very minimum, it does not list many associate members including DreamCricket Academy. The list also does not include at least one other league in my region. And there might well be other such inconsistencies. At the risk of repeating, the aforementioned list could be rendered more useful.
Good standing
The 'Summary of Leagues and Clubs paid through December 31, 2010' document lists the leagues, whether associate or full-member, that have not yet paid their dues for 2010.
According to this list, nine (9) leagues have not yet paid their membership dues for 2010. The nine leagues are - Cricket League of New Jersey, Garden State Cricket League, Millenium Cricket League, Indoor Cricket USA, ICMCL, National Cricket League, United Cricket Conference, New York Cricket League and the Mid-Atlantic Cricket Conference.
Per the constitution, these leagues could have their membership terminated "due to non-payment of membership of fees, dues, fines, assessments or penalty which remains unpaid by the stipulated date." To an emailed query on whether the board had stipulated a date or established a penalty for delinquent leagues, John Thickett, the USACA Treasurer replied: "No late payment penalties were established by the Board in 2010. Whether someone can pay a late payment penalty now, also pay for 2010, and remain in good standing is up to the Board."
I know for certain that some of these leagues have every intention to pay their past dues and zero intention of losing their membership. I have also spoken to representatives of two leagues and they told me that it was just an oversight! Well, the leagues need to clean up their act and be aware of the consequences.
It would have helped everyone involved, including the cash-strapped USACA, if a reminder was posted on USACA website ahead of the payment deadline. CLNJ alone had 46 clubs and might have contributed $4,600 to USACA's coffers when that money was most needed. I am not suggesting that USACA was obligated to do this, but I think it is a good practice. Even my municipality sends out a reminder for the taxes it collects.
Bogus leagues
We like to think cricket is special because we have 'laws' instead of rules. The unfortunate reality is that there are those that follow the law, and there are those that don't. Just as matches can be won by fixing, it appears that leagues too can be fixed.
Earlier this year, I received an email from a league administrator who wrote to inform me that he and a few others had broken away from his previous league to form a new association. While on the topic, he noted with anguish that there were several 'bogus' leagues in his region. "Everybody in my region knows which ones these are," he wrote. I requested him to do us all a favor and name the 'bogus' leagues for the record. He replied that he did not want to put his newly formed league "at risk" by challenging the administrators of his region - a tacit admission that the regional administrators cannot be expected to be fair.
Interestingly, a quick review of the USACA Paid Club Numbers by League list reveals that 10 of the 48 leagues i.e. roughly 20% of the leagues had the exact magic total of eight (8) clubs. I have heard that some underdeclare (to save the $100 per club fees) and some overdeclare (likely for voting privileges). Of course, I have no doubt at all that a few of these 8-club leagues are bona fide.
I spoke to the league administrators of two leagues which enjoy full-member status. One told me that he knows he does not qualify as a full member league. The other confessed that his league had not played any matches in 2010! These gentlemen know who they are! One of them told me that he applied to become an associate league but was granted the rights of a full-member. He told me that he does not plan to vacate his seat at the board because he wants to contribute meaningfully to his region. I don't doubt him at all because I know first-hand that he is among the more energetic contributors to cricket in the region. But driving licenses are not given out to persons just because they are good, can drive and are of driving age. There are other systemic requirements that must be met. And if you don't agree with those requirements, then the right thing to do is to fix the system.
That brings us to the issue at hand - how do we guarantee proportionate representation. How do we give a voice to the organizations that want to contribute to the region and to USACA?
Give clubs the vote
My proposal is to give each unique club a vote. The clubs must designate the leagues they are affiliated to. If they choose, they should be allowed to grant proxies to a delegate. Each club getting the vote should undergo proper due diligence. This due diligence should be thorough and should help to identify potential duplication. Each club must be required to disclose their members, all of whom become card-carrying individual members of USACA. This is not rocket-science.
Under this proposed framework, an academy will have a vote if it plays as a club within a larger league. In addition to cleansing the system of bogus leagues, it will also expand USACA's reach. Take a hypothetical league in Hawaii, just as an example. Let us assume that the league has four highly motivated clubs. Why not collect dues from the four clubs and offer them voting privileges? Especially if these clubs are doing their bit to promote cricket in an area that USACA presently has no presence in? Do they not deserve proportional representation in their region's affairs? Don't you think the region will be motivated to get involved in that territory if the clubs had a say in their region's affairs?
I know of at least four active leagues in my region that have not joined USACA. Their clubs are in far-flung corners of the Atlantic Region - from Pittsburg, PA to Wilmington, DE. I think the proposed format will be sufficient motivation for these leagues to opt in. And even if the leagues themselves opt out, some of their component clubs may join as associates.
In summary, under the proposed approach, there is a greater chance that the non-affiliated organizations that currently opt out, the associate leagues that do not have the required number of clubs, and qualifying academies, all will become part of the overall national fabric.
Size matters!
Of course, granting votes to clubs eliminates the forced voting parity between a league that has 30 clubs and one that is an 8-club league.
The 'size-doesn't-matter' policy has led to undesirable side-effects with the larger leagues feeling left out of important decisions that affect the region. In some cases, an unhealthy adversarial relationship has developed between the larger and smaller leagues. I have heard horror stories about leagues that have tried to get a ground for themselves by bad-mouthing a rival league. I am not making any of this up! This is the present day reality.
The current structure does not reward organizations that are cohesive and work hard towards gaining greater influence. Quite the contrary, I have spoken to two league administrators who said they have considered breaking up their large league into a federation of smaller leagues for greater political influence.
Since we are on this topic, I think we should also do away with the 3-league minimum requirement for qualification as a region. This rule is somewhat arbitrary. Divisions based on quality of cricket or geographic separation are justified - we see them in every cricket playing nation. But I see no reason for having a league for league's sake. Among the many undesirable side-effects, I have noticed that this leads to regions having inter-league tournaments among unequals.
Card Carrying Members
Late last year, I spoke to two cricketers who live in Bentonville, Arkansas, which is the home of Walmart. One of them had played first class cricket for Tamil Nadu until 2005 and the other played first class cricket for both Mumbai and Surrey in the 90's. Both are experienced coaches, in fact, one of them has been a development coach for a very famous team, which shall be unnamed. The two gentlemen were keen on getting involved with cricket in USA.
Following my conversations, it occurred to me that there was currently no path for these two extremely qualified cricketers to become card-carrying members of USACA. USACA membership is presently only open to organizations "with a verifiable membership base of at least fifteen (15) members." Are they to join the nearest competitive full-member league in Dallas, TX, some 350 miles away! Their alternative approach is to join the recreational Bentonville Cricket league (yes there is such a league, and it has 8 teams), then persuade that league to join USACA!
How is this player, who has played for Tamil Nadu and still have some years left, ever going to know the dates for a regional try-out if he is not part of a club that is part of a member league of his CW region? Don't you think USACA could open its doors a bit wider?
[Full disclosure: The author is a founder of DreamCricket.com, and by extension, DreamCricket Academy. Since August of 2010, the author has represented CLNJ on the board of the Atlantic Region. CLNJ is the region's largest member league. Opinions expressed here are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the positions of these organizations.]
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By Peter Della Penna
The USA Cricket Association has released a preliminary schedule of
domestic tournament fixtures for 2011. The schedule of events, obtained
from USACA General Manager Manaf Mohamed, includes the newly formed U-17
National Championship and senior men’s Twenty20 tournaments. According
to the sites listed, the USACA U-19 National Championship slated for
autumn in Los Angeles is the only tournament that will be played on turf
wickets.
The practice of having Eastern and Western
Conference Tournaments over three days has been eliminated for 2011 in
favor of having all eight regions converging on one site to play in
four-day events. According to Mohamed, this was aimed as a cost-cutting
mechanism as it will eliminate the need to organize a super league
tournament later in the year to decide a national champion for senior,
junior and women’s categories.
The first tournament of the year is the inaugural U-17 National
Championship which is set to be staged on Memorial Day weekend from May
27 to 30 in Orlando, Fla. It will be used to help select a team for the
first ever ICC Americas U-17 tournament that is slated for early July.
The inaugural USACA Men’s Twenty20 Championship will be held from
June 17 to 20 in Dallas, Texas. This could be the first step in an
attempt to pick a separate Twenty20 squad for USA which would have a
different look than the team that has represented USA in 50-over matches
at recent World Cricket League tournaments. USA will be competing in
the ICC Americas Division One Twenty20 in July. The event was due to be
held in Toronto, but multiple sources have indicated that it will be
shifted to Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and held in late July. Two spots will
be up for grabs for the 2012 ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier in the UAE.
The USACA Women’s Championship will be held on the east coast for the
first time. It is anticipated that the event will be held in New York
and New Jersey in a joint effort between the New York and Atlantic
Regions on Independence Day weekend from July 1 to 4. It will provide an
opportunity for younger players to break into the USA Women’s team that
will be competing at the Women’s World Cup Qualifier in Bangladesh in
November.
The USACA U-15 National Championship is targeted for July 8 to 11 in
Connecticut. The state hosted the USACA U-19 Eastern Conference
tournament in 2010. USA’s U-15 team will be playing in the ICC Americas
U-15 Northern Division in Canada this August.
The USACA Senior Nationals tournament is scheduled for Labor Day
weekend in Dallas. The 50-over event will take place from September 2 to
5.
The USACA Junior Nationals will not be held until after the USA U-19
team has participated in the ICC U-19 World Cup Global Qualifier in
Ireland from July 28 to August 9. Mohamed stated that it would be held
in Los Angeles but that a date had not been determined. He indicated
that it would likely be held on a school holiday weekend in September or
October. A quick look at the calendar shows that Columbus Day weekend
is the most probable date. Despite not having any tournament before the
USA U-19 team travels to Ireland, a camp may be organized in early June
in order to prepare the team and offer a chance for reserve players to
push for selection.
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Comments
 One
more edition of the Cricket World Cup is here and it is time for
cricket lovers to fork out a princely sum of money to follow the sport
that they love.
After all, we live in a country where you
can watch all sorts of sports including wife-carrying and
lumber-jacking on TV but not cricket. Not even if it begins at 3AM
when most channels are trying to sell you random exercise equipment
that you will never use!
To add insult to injury, this year, the rugby world cup will make a debut on NBC!
As cricket fans, we are condemned to the fringes of the broadcast
revolution. "Buffering" is the dreaded b-word. We expand our tech
prowess and learn how to turn screensavers off. We leave a window open
for text commentary, just in case. We hit "refresh" just to see if
that improves anything. And we toggle between the handful of Willow's
servers trying to find the stream with the least amount of latency.
Yes, we have witnessed some improvements - certainly there is the
phenomenal clarity of HD if you have a satellite dish. And there is
the over-advertised availability of a wide variety of mobile devices on
which to watch - but do you seriously think you can watch cricket via
3G?
Here is an overview of where to watch the World Cup if you live in USA.
Online: First things first, Willow TV, the leader in live cricket broadcasts across North America is the ONLY legitimate
way to watch the World Cup via the internet. Willow TV's stream can be
seen via all browsers, all smartphone mobile devices, most tablet
devices including iPad and several other IP ready devices including
Google TV, Roku and Samsung Internet@TV. Willow acquired the exclusive
rights to distribute cricket's marquee competition on television,
broadband and the Internet in the United States through an agreement
with ESPN STAR Sports (ESS), ICC's global broadcast and production
partner.
Willow TV's World Cup package costs $129 and you can get a discount
if you avail of partner offers. Several friends of this writer
received a free monthly subscription to Willow TV following the world
cup. The writer did not receive such an offer, so individual
experiences will vary on the freebies.
Piracy Alert: If you are paying for a
stream that is not from Willow.TV, then it will most likely be shut
down and you will not only be staring at a blank screen, you will also
lose your money. Several websites have already been served with legal notices and Willow TV announced that it will go after all illegal streams.
"With the concerted efforts of our own internal anti-piracy team and
our top-tier legal counsel, working in close collaborations with
private investigators, broadcasters, legal authorities and financial
institutions globally, Willow TV has been able to strike decisive blows
against the perpetrators of this illegal activity," Willow TV said in a
letter distributed to its customers and to the media.
Satellite Dish: If you are
lucky enough to have satellite TV service, then you will be pleased to
know that both DISH and DIRECTV are broadcasting the World Cup. The
advantage with these services is that you can watch in HD.
DIRECTV: DIRECTV's world cup package costs $149. The package can be ordered by calling 1-800-378-3309.
DISH Network: DISH is reportedly offering a World
Cup package for $129. This writer could not verify the price because
he was presented with a login prompt.
DISH + Vonage Free Offer: DISH has an interesting
free subscription offer. However, you will need to subscribe to both
DISH Network (800-823-4929) and Vonage (800-680-7554). If you do that
and you add Cricket World Cup to your order, then your world cup
package is free.
To be eligible for this package, a customer must activate either new
DISH Network service with a 24-month commitment or DISH Network IPTV
service with a 12-month commitment and subscribe to a qualifying South
Asian programming package by 3/25/11. Qualifying programming starts at
$19.99/mo and requires additional programming subscriptions. Credit for
Cricket World Cup will reflect price at the time of service activation.
Few people this writer has spoken to have claimed that the free
subscription offer was also open to existing DISH customers if they
made certain commitments. If you are an existing DISH customer, please
verify with the customer service representative before ordering.
IPTV: This year, the DISH World IPTV offers
you another method of watching the World Cup. IPTV delivers your
favorite international programming through a broadband connection. You
will need a TV, high speed internet (minimum 1.5 Mbps), an IPTV box
from DISH Network and a credit or a debit card. After your order is
completed online, your set top box will be shipped directly to your
residence with set up instructions. All you have to do is connect
your TV and Ethernet cable to your DISH Network IPTV box and plug it in.
To get the World Cup package, you must commit to another "World Cup
eligible" package. The cheapest option appears to be the Willow
Cricket monthly subscription, which costs $19.99. The World Cup
package is $129.99. Add to that the cost of the set top box and the
shipping and you end up with $265. And don't forget that you have to
fork out $19.99 every month. Now, is it that much better than
watching it online via Willow.TV or hooking up Willow.TV to your TV,
that is for you to decide.
It is clearly an option if you want some additional Asian
programming on your TV and are unable to get it because you live in a
condo where a satellite dish is not allowed.
Highlights: In a first of
its kind move, Hindi general entertainment channel Star Plus is going
to broadcast highlights of the ICC Cricket World Cup throughout North
America beginning 26 February. Star Plus’ World Cup Show will comprise
highlights of all 49 matches over a six-week period where the matches
are held in India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. The ICC Cricket World Show
will provide the latest cricket news, recent cricket action as well as
off-field features and interviews with the sportsmen from around the
world.
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Now, you can get all the USA Cricket updates via Facebook. Also follow us on Twitter via @dreamcricket
About Atlantic Region Cricket Board:
The Atlantic Region is a member of the United States of America Cricket Association- the governing body for cricket in United States and an Associate Member of the International Cricket Council (ICC) . The regional board is responsible for fostering the growth and development of cricket within the Atlantic Region comprising seven states stretching from New Jersey to Virginia.
With cricket's popularity growing steadily in the region and across the country, the region is seeking qualified coaches and selectors who are willing to volunteer their time to assist in developing the region's cricketers. This is a unique opportunity for those who want to get involved with the region's cricket development from the ground up.
Coaches:
.jpg) The region is presently looking for two (2) head coaches and three (3) assistant coaches. One head coach will supervise the coaching of the region's U15 and the U17 teams while the second head coach is being sought for U19, Seniors and the Women's teams.
Coaches for the U15 and U17 must have the basic knowledge of cricket and some experience working with kids in a developmental capacity. Coaches for the U19, Seniors and Women's teams must have very good knowledge of the game of cricket and worked with cricketers on an advanced level.
Those interested must send a brief profile including pertinent details such as certifications and past experience to the Secretary of the Atlantic Region Cricket Board via the following email address - trinigemts@hotmail.com. Any questions should also be addressed to the Secretary.
Selectors:
The region is seeking several selectors to constitute selection committees for the various cricket teams.
The selection committees will be responsible for selecting the region's teams in a fair, transparent and impartial manner. Selectors must at all times demonstrate professionalism and dedication to selecting the best available players.
Candidates applying to join the selection committee(s) must be available to observe and evaluate talent during league, inter-league, regional trials, as well as regional and national tournaments and file monthly reports with the chairman of selectors. The selection committee shall recommend captains and vice captains for the various teams, subject to the approval of the regional board.
Those interested must send a brief profile to the Secretary via an email addressed to trinigemts@hotmail.com - along with their certifications and past experience, if any. Interested candidates must specify the age category or team they have been most involved with in the past or would like to be involved with in the future. Any questions should also be addressed to the Secretary.
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Now, you can get all the USA Cricket updates via Facebook. Also follow us on Twitter via @dreamcricket
By Peter Della Penna
Heading into last week’s ICC Americas U-19 tournament in Florida, the
overriding opinion from coaches, administrators and observers was that
this U-19 team was not as talented as the squad that made it to the 2010
U-19 World Cup. That team featured some special players, including five
who have played at the senior level for USA either before or after
going to New Zealand.
As such, it was believed that this group might have a harder time
than their predecessors getting past both Canada and Bermuda to reach
the U-19 World Cup Qualifier later this summer in Ireland. That was
proved wrong in emphatic fashion with a first place undefeated 5-0
record for USA’s U-19 team.
The biggest improvement in the team compared to the previous squad
came in the pace bowling department. USA’s U-19 squad struggled for
early breakthroughs in each of the three international tournaments they
played in 2009 and 2010. Generally speaking, the team used 10 overs of
pace at the top of the innings and then five overs at the end when the
opposition took the batting power play. The rest of the overs were eaten
up by spinners. There just wasn’t a reliable third pace bowling option.
Almost the exact opposite turned
out to be the case in Fort Lauderdale. Salman Ahmad took a total of 8
wickets over three tournaments with the 2009-10 USA U-19 team, but the
South West Region product has shown remarkable improvement over the last
18 months. Not many players have worked harder at developing their game
than Ahmad and it showed as he became the undisputed spearhead of the
USA U-19 attack in Florida, finishing with 11 wickets at an average of
5.55 and an economy rate of 2.18 in a team high 28 overs.
Image (right) - Salman Ahmad (right) gets a high five from
captain Abhijit Joshi after removing Bermuda's Christian Burgess. Ahmad
finished second on the team with 11 wickets. [Courtesy: Peter Della
Penna/DreamCricket]
Ahmad teamed up with Hammad Shahid and Mital Patel to form a very
incisive pace trio. At the same event in 2009 in Toronto, USA’s pace
bowlers took just 12 wickets as opposed to 33 by the spinners. In Fort
Lauderdale, USA’s fast men claimed 27 wickets while 17 were collected by
the spinners. At the ICC Americas U-19 in 2009, the opposition had
opening stands of 1, 12, 66, 62 and 14 runs. In 2011, USA’s opponents
produced 0, 6, 6, 0 and 32 runs for the first wicket.
Not that USA’s spin bowlers were slouches in Florida. It’s just that
they had less work to do. Leg-spinner Gurpreet Sandhu still managed to
tie for the tournament lead with 12 wickets at an average of 3.67
despite bowling just 18 overs. Meanwhile, left-arm spinner Shayan
Abdulghani took five wickets in 20 overs but had a remarkable 1.58
economy during the week. Arguably his best effort was one in which he
went wicketless, finishing with 0 for 15 in 7.2 overs against Canada.
The team also has highly regarded off-spinner Pranay Suri waiting in the
wings, ready to make a contribution with the ball down the road after
getting only one over in Florida.
A large part of the precision and focus was passed down to the team
by new head coach Robin Singh. While 10 of the players were playing for
USA for the first time, they all looked like well drilled veterans by
the end of the week. After each of the first four games, Singh took the
players back out onto the field for one to two hours to engage in a
series of demanding practice sessions, utilizing all of the time he had
available with the team. During matches, he would take the three players
not in the starting XI, make them run sprints and do other training
activities instead of allowing them to sit on their hands for three
hours. It paid off with the end result.
 The
only area of concern appears to be the batting unit. Cameron Mirza was
the tournament MVP and formed a potent opening combination with Steven
Taylor, but what followed after them is a cause for worry. While the
middle order only got two chances to bat, they collectively failed both
times against Argentina and Canada. The only noteworthy contributions
were Ahmad’s scorching 62 at number seven against Argentina and a
fighting 34 made by Suri at number six against Canada.
Image (left) - Cameron Mirza receives his Tournament MVP award
from former West Indies Test spinner Lance Gibbs. [Courtesy: Peter Della
Penna/DreamCricket]
If Greg Sewdial returns to 100% fitness this spring following a
second ankle surgery in December, he figures to be a shoe-in for the
squad going to Ireland. The team needs someone with plenty of experience
to strengthen the lineup. He had a subpar tournament at the U-19 World
Cup Qualifier in Toronto in 2009, but finished as USA’s leading scorer
at the U-19 World Cup in New Zealand and that was with a damaged ankle
that became progressively worse with every match he participated in.
He originally injured it prior to the 2009 USACA U-19 National
Tournament. Now that the problem has hopefully been corrected, Sewdial
can focus on getting fit and back to his best form. With him in the
squad, USA’s chances of advancing to the 2012 ICC U-19 World Cup are
greatly enhanced.
USA will be joined by Canada from the Americas for the 10-team ICC
U-19 World Cup Qualifier. They’ll be taking on Kenya and Namibia from
Africa, Afghanistan and Nepal from Asia, Papua New Guinea and Vanuatu
from East Asia-Pacific, as well as Scotland and hosts Ireland from
Europe. USA will play nine matches in the round-robin format event that
will take place from July 28-August 9.
Should USA finish in the top six in Ireland, it appears that
Australia will be the final destination for the 2012 U-19 World Cup. It
was reported on January 6 in a Sa’adi Thawfeeq article on ESPNcricinfo
that Australia will be hosting the event. Several other sources have
indicated the same. However, no official confirmation or announcement
has been made by the ICC.
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 California Cricket Academy (CCA) has launched its annual outreach by offering free informational sessions for kids aged 6 and higher.
The first of the three free sessions was held on February 12th and drew 50 kids according to the organizers. The two remaining sessions will be held on February 19th and 26th from 9 AM until Noon (Pacific) at the Dilworth Elementary School at 1101 Strayer Drive, San Jose, CA 95129.
To make it fun for the boys and girls, the CCA Cricket Festival, as the outreach initiative is called, will have booths and areas set up where attendees are introduced to cricket rules and get hands-on experience with fielding, bowling and batting. Children who visit all the booths earn a prize.
"It will be a good way to get them started," Hemant Buch, founder of CCA told the Cupertino Courier. The cricket academy will provide snacks, drinks and all the equipment needed for all participants. "Anyone who comes will have a good time," Buch said.
The festival is open to both boys and girls, no equipment is needed, and it is free! Visitors can participate in one session or all three. "[The kids'] energy is channeled into the right direction, into something constructive,” Ajay Athavale, president of the CCA, told the Cupertino Patch. CCA is also reaching out to the mainstream. Those curious about cricket and want to experience the sport first-hand are also welcome to give it a shot. In the words of Mahesh Nihalani, CCA Advisory Board member: “I think it's one game that brings in so much of sportsmanship and team spirit that it builds that bond between people.”
For more information, please visit www.calcricket.org or call 408.420.7121 or 408.777.9983.
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Now, you can get all the USA Cricket updates via Facebook. Also follow us on Twitter via @dreamcricket
 At the regional AGM held on November 2, 2010, several attendees spoke of a need for a platform for junior cricketers to play year-round cricket. Their wish became a reality on February 12, 2011 when the NJ Junior Cricket League kicked of with an indoor match between Black Ops and Alpha Wolves at the DreamCricket Indoor Nets.
Pic (Right): Pranav Kanukollu [Courtesy: Sateesh KVK]
In the first of the five match indoor series in the league's winter edition, the Alpha Wolves defeated the Black Ops by a margin of 10 runs. In a match where each batting pair played 5 overs, Pranav Kanukollu top-scored for the Alpha Wolves with 13. Yash Kulkarni was the top run getter for Black Ops with 16.
The league, christened the 'NJ Junior Cricket League,' has reached an agreement with clubs in New Jersey and New York for the use of the grounds. When the league moves outdoors in April, it is anticipated that the two founding teams will be joined by several other teams from New Jersey, Connecticut, New York and Pennsylvania.
"The league would have remained just an idea without the assurance of the Staten Island Cricket Club who have graciously agreed to continue their support of junior cricket. In addition, we are grateful for the support of Pradeep Vedala, Jaideep Reddy and Bharat Patel from the NJ's leagues for offering the use of their grounds and also agreeing to actively support the league. It is largely due to their support that we can now schedule matches in NJ and Staten Island once the winter ends," Venu Palaparthi said.
NJJCL will play Saturdays and a representative team from NJJCL will also take part in Division 3 of the CLNJ. "We are developing a process wherein eligible junior cricketers, based on skill level and physical ability, will be certified to play alongside senior coach-mentors in a team in the CLNJ," Palaparthi said.
The league would not be possible without the enthusiastic participation of the parents. Having waited for some years for the league to take off, parents demonstrated their eagerness by taking on the roles of scorers, umpires and coaches in yesterday's inaugural indoor match. "All these youngsters have had good skills training, thanks to Coach Daley but it is time they participate in the regular league matches to bring out their true talent, part of which was seen at the last Under 15 USACA inter-region games," Mohan Saikara, father of Harish Saikara told DreamCricket.com. "I believe that this is the first step, and we sincerely hope that it gathers momentum in the coming days," Saikara said.
 Pic (Right) : Zahid Rahmat [Courtesy: Sateesh KVK]
Coach Earl Daley, who has been closely involved with a majority of cricketers, will play a key role in the league and monitor the boys' progress in a team setting.
Recovering from shoulder surgery, Mr. Daley's thoughts were with the league at the start of the first match and he sent a brief encouraging email ahead of the first match: "All the best," he wrote, but not without a reminder that the kids use "proper technique." In keeping with his desire to reinforce proper technique during the winter season, indoor cricket rules have been modified to reward only shots played along the ground.
Over time, the NJJCL hopes to find volunteer coaches to help each team. "We hope that the senior cricketers will pass along their love for the game to the next generation. An enterprise such as this needs the support of the entire cricket loving community," Palaparthi said. Adding that a search was on to find a cricket-friendly lawyer who could help the league pro bono with filing for a non-profit status. "For this league to expand, we need the support of corporate and community sponsors. And for that to happen, it is important to register the league as a non-profit corporation."
Speaking about DreamCricket's role, Kranthi Bayya, CEO of DreamCricket.com, said that as the preeminent coaching academy in the region, DreamCricket was happy to serve as a catalyst for the formation of the league. "We are proud to be involved with the league's formation but I want to be clear that the league itself should be an independent body with active involvement from and support of all leagues, academies and aspiring junior cricketers in the region. This league ultimately belongs to the cricketers."
The NJJCL is not the first junior initiative in New Jersey. As recently as 2007, the now dormant Junior NJ Cricket program boasted 70 young cricketers. In fact, USA U-19 cricketers Mital Patel and Cameron Mirza, took part in that program. If you look back to cricket's glory years in the 19th century, junior cricketers played the sport in the present-day Atlantic Region in large numbers. Cricket was played at schools such as John Quincy Adams Grammar School, Protestant Episcopal Academy, Farmer’s High School of Bellafonte, Central High School of Philadelphia and Lawrenceville School near Trenton throughout the latter half of the 19th century. In 1860, 300 students out of the total strength of 500 students at the Philadelphia Free Academy played cricket. In fact, cricket still survives at Lawrenceville School, which boasts a cricket program that is 150 years old.
 Pic (Right): The Alpha Wolves: Back Row - Zahid Rahmat, Shekhar Kripalani, Ryan Aravind, Pranav Kanakollu. Front Row - Advaith Manur and Harish Eashwar [Courtesy: Sateesh KVK]
The truth remains that despite the growing popularity of cricket, there has not been a year-round schedule of matches for the young cricketers to hone their skills. Until last year, aspiring young cricketers from DreamCricket Academy had to travel to California, Michigan and Florida to get real match practice. "There were the national tournament and the inter-academy fixtures, but these were few and far between. To his credit, Coach Daley organized some matches last year against teams from Philly, Maryland and Connecticut. But generally speaking, when you talk about the majority of the boys and you look at what is needed from a cricket development standpoint, the chances of the boys getting a game every weekend were slim to none," Bayya said.
Bayya said that the league was conceived at a meeting that was convened at DreamCricket Pavilion on December 5, 2010. "It is heartening to see the idea come to fruition thanks to the efforts of the kids, the parents, and the coach."
The league is actively recruiting players and volunteers. If you want to join the league and wish to learn more about the league's winter and summer calendar, please write to frontfoot@dreamcricket.com.
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By Peter Della Penna in Fort Lauderdale
Salman Ahmad and Jodhbir Singh took two wickets each to spark a
dramatic collapse by Canada as USA defended 143 to win by 23 runs at the
Central Broward Regional Park stadium on Saturday at the ICC Americas
U-19 Division One in Lauderhill, Fla. Ahmad was named Man of the Match
after taking 2 for 20 as USA finished undefeated to win the tournament
title.
“I think definitely my two wickets today were a lot better than the
wickets that came before them, especially coming in such an important
match,” said Ahmad. “I had kind of a rough start to today’s game so it
just felt good to come back and help the team out and I’d like to thank
my teammates for supporting me.”
After morning showers caused a two-hour delay and reduced the match
from 50 to 36 overs per side, USA won the toss and batted first. The
opening combination of Steven Taylor and Cameron Mirza got USA off to
another solid start, putting on 37 runs for the first wicket.
The pair looked like they were set for a long stay after Taylor
flayed Manny Aulakh behind point for his fourth boundary, but on the
very next ball, Taylor chased a wide one and sent an edge through to the
keeper Darren Ramsammy to go for 21.
First change bowler Rayyankhan Pathan proceeded to rip through USA’s
lineup to turn the match upside down. Abhijit Joshi was struck in front
to be LBW for 5 and three balls later Fahad Babar was clean bowled to
make it 50 for 3. Singh was run out for 5 in a mix up with Mirza when
Singh tried to push a Pathan delivery into midwicket and set off for a
run, but both Singh and Mirza were hesitant and Tristan Ali’s throw beat
Singh trying to get back in his crease and the score became 66 for 4 in
the 16th.
Pathan struck again in the 18th when he removed the well set Mirza
for 29 by taking a simple return catch in his follow through to make it
77 for 5. The medium pacer got his fourth when he snagged his second
caught and bowled to dismiss Gurpreet Sandhu for 4 to make it 83 for 6
in the 20th. In the 22nd, Pathan just missed his five-wicket haul when
Pranay Suri sent a chance back to Pathan. The bowler couldn’t complete a
one-handed catch, but the ball went off his hand and cannoned into the
non-striker’s stumps with Ahmad just out of his crease and USA was 7
down for 93. Pathan finished with 4 for 30 in addition to the two run
outs that came off his bowling.
USA had looked set for 180, but with the rapid fall of wickets, Suri
and Hammad Shahid consolidated and produced a vital 28-run stand for the
8th wicket. Towards the end of the stand, Suri stepped out to launch
two big sixes off Canadian spinners Kesavan Juvarajan and Nikhil Dutta.
He was finally caught on the long off boundary going for a third against
Juvarajan, but Suri’s 34 was USA’s high score on the day and a key
contribution coming in at number six. Shahid and Mital Patel added
another 22 in the final 5.2 overs to boost USA’s total as they finished
on 143 for 8.
Akash Shah and Dutta provided a steady start for Canada, staging 32
for the first wicket in nine overs before Patel had Shah caught by
Shayan Abdulghani at mid on for 17. Dutta was then run out for 12 in a
big mix up with Tristan Ali and Shahid fired to Taylor, who flicked off
the bails to make it 41 for 2 after 11.
Kyle Edghill came in and teamed up with Ali to put on 50 runs for the
third wicket. During the partnership, it looked like Edghill was going
to lead Canada across the line. Abdulghani and Sandhu had come on to
choke the scoring rate, but couldn’t make the breakthrough to end the
stand. 
Image (above) - USA's U-19 squad celebrates after finishing the
tournament undefeated. [Courtesy: Peter Della Penna/DreamCricket]
Ahmad returned for his second spell and seemingly out of nowhere
managed to bowl Edghill for 33 after the batsman tried backing away to
play through the off side but inside edged a good length delivery onto
his stumps on the first ball of the 26th over. That was the catalyst
that turned things around for USA in the field. With Edghill at the
crease, Canada needed 53 to win in 11 overs with eight wickets in hand,
but 29 runs later, they were all out.
“At the drinks break, they were 69 for 2 and it looked like they were
really taking the game away from us,” said Ahmad. “But we stood back,
we looked at the score and we realized that they weren’t going at the
run rate they needed to be going at. They were still going around three
and a half, four, they needed just around four an over. So we decided
that we had five, six tight overs, we’d be able to bring them back and
it does feel good winning against Canada after losing to them twice [in
2009].”
Singh came on from the other end to bowl medium pace and in his
second over, had Ramsammy caught by Patel at midwicket off a full toss
for a duck. Ahmad struck again in the 30th to get rid of the captain
Juvarajan who went for a big heave and was clean bowled for 5. Four
balls later, Ali’s long and torturous stay at the crease finally ended
for 14 when he drove Singh to Patel coming in from long on to make it 99
for 6.
With the tight bowling from the spinners in the middle overs, the run
rate climbed dramatically and now Canada had to go for everything, but
just about nothing came off with any success. Pathan was run out by a
direct hit from Babar at square leg for 2 after Aulakh clipped a full
delivery and set off for a run that wasn’t there.
Aulakh tried to clear the fences against the leg spin of Sandhu in
the 34th, but only managed to find Singh at midwicket inside the circle
for 8. Three balls later, Sandhu clean bowled Sudeepta Aurka for 2 to
make it 116 for 9. Jobanjot Sidhu was run out two balls later by the
teamwork of Shahid and Taylor once more to set off wild celebrations on
the field as USA’s players went about grabbing souvenir stumps to
commemorate bowling out Canada for 120, finishing the week with a
perfect 5-0 record.
Canada finished the week in second place at 4-1 while Bermuda
finished at third with a 3-2 record after beating Argentina by 10
wickets on Saturday. Meanwhile, there was a three-way tie for fourth
after Bahamas beat Cayman Islands by 3 wickets as both teams joined
Argentina at 1-4 on the week.
At the tournament awards ceremony, Sacha DeAlwis of the Cayman
Islands was named Best Batsman while Canada’s Aulakh was named the Best
Bowler. Ramsammy from Canada was named Best Wicketkeeper while USA’s
Mirza was named Tournament MVP.
CORRECTION – In yesterday’s article, it was written that Gurpreet
Sandhu was the first bowler to take five wickets for USA U-19 since
Saqib Saleem took 5 for 38 against Ireland at the 2009 U-19 World Cup
Qualifier. The last bowler to take a five-wicket haul prior to Sandhu
for USA U-19 was actually Muhammad Ghous, who took 5 for 46 against
Afghanistan at the 2009 U-19 World Cup Qualifier.
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By Peter Della Penna in Fort Lauderdale
Salman Ahmad claimed three wickets before leg-spinner Gurpreet Sandhu
wiped out the lower order as USA bowled out Bermuda for 50 in 17.2
overs before winning by 10 wickets at Brian Piccolo Park on Friday at
the ICC Americas U-19 Division One in Cooper City, Fla. Sandhu was named
Man of the Match after finishing with 5 for 7. It’s the first
five-wicket haul for a USA U-19 player since Saqib Saleem took 5 for 38
against Ireland at the 2009 U-19 World Cup Qualifier in Toronto. With
the win, USA has clinched a berth at the 2011 U-19 World Cup Qualifier
scheduled for July 28-August 9 in Ireland.
“The thing is that when we get early breakthroughs, we tend to not
relax and that’s what we’ve been focusing on the whole tournament, is
not relaxing,” said Sandhu. “When you’re on top is to really choke the
opposition down, make sure that you don’t let them go and that’s what
we’ve been focusing on. We’ve been focusing on keeping the energy up in
the field and that’s I think what really won us the game.”
USA won the toss and sent Bermuda in to bat first on a grassy wicket.
On the second ball of the match, Ahmad clean bowled Christian Burgess
for none. Four overs later, Ahmad bowled danger man Kamau Leverock for 9
and followed it up by removing William White for 9 by bowling him
behind his legs to make it 26 for 3.
“We wanted to make sure that we get the opposition out as soon as we
can,” said USA U-19 coach Robin Singh about the decision to field first
on a day where storms were predicted. There was some rain during the
match, but never enough to take the teams off the field. “It was nothing
to do with the wicket. I think if it wasn’t a problem with the weather,
we would have batted first.”
With the top three gone ,
there was little resistance provided down the order. Mital Patel took
two in four balls to make it 27 for 5 in the eighth over. With the tail
exposed, Sandhu was brought on and struck with his sixth ball to remove
Tre Manders for 3 on the last ball of the 12th over to make it 42 for 6.
Sandhu struck twice more in the 14th and 16th before taking two in the
18th to finish off the innings with figures of 5 for 7.
Image (right) - USA U-19 bowler Salman Ahmad gets a high five
from captain Abhijut Joshi (10) after the bowling Bermuda's Christian
Burgess. Ahmad took three wickets in all and it wasn't long before
Bermuda was all out for 50. [Courtesy: Peter Della Penna/DreamCricket]
“Once you get rid of the top batsmen, it’s easier to get the
tailenders out if you keep focused and keep doing what you’re doing,”
said Sandhu. “Once we got the top order batsmen out as the lower order
comes around, those batsmen aren’t as good as the top order batsmen so
we keep focused and we go all the way and that’s what the difference has
been.”
Steven Taylor and Cameron Mirza walked out to open for USA and
despite the threat of rain, confidently went about knocking off the
runs. Taylor did offer one chance at mid off on 15 with the score on 35
in the 9th over, but it was put down and he continued with Mirza until
the target was reached. Taylor finished 21 not out and Mirza unbeaten on
17. Mirza leads the team with 164 runs in the tournament and has yet to
be dismissed.
Former West Indies Test spinner Lance Gibbs was on hand to watch USA
play on Friday and spoke to the team after the match, as did USACA
President Gladstone Dainty. Each man encouraged the team to keep
performing as they have all week and finish off the tournament
undefeated with a win over Canada.
“We’ve really not seen Canada much,” said Singh. “I think as a team
we are quite confident. We’re pretty much well prepared for them and I
think obviously they are one of the better teams in the competition so
hopefully we can play good cricket tomorrow and maintain our standards.”
USA will play Canada on Saturday inside the stadium at Central
Broward Regional Park for the tournament title. Both teams have
qualified for Ireland, along with the host team, Scotland, Kenya,
Namibia, Afghanistan, Nepal, Papua New Guinea and Vanuatu. DreamCricket
will have live coverage of USA’s match against Canada beginning at 9:30
a.m.
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By Peter Della Penna in Fort Lauderdale
Another day and another romp for USA as the team bowled out Cayman
Islands for 40 before chasing the runs in 4.4 overs to win by 10 wickets
on Wednesday inside the Central Broward Regional Park stadium at the
ICC Americas U-19 Division One in Lauderhill, Fla. Left-arm orthodox
spinner Shayan Abdulghani was named Man of the Match for USA after
finishing with figures of 3 for 3 in four overs.
“I’ve been practicing mostly my line and length and flighting the
ball because I bowl a little flat,” said Abdulghani. “Coach told me
flight the ball a little towards middle stump and you’ll get more
wickets and you’ll get more nicks, edges and stuff like that.”
Cayman Islands won the toss and elected to bat first on a sunny
morning with a different pitch being used than the ones for the first
two matches inside the stadium at the tournament. They came into the
match 1-1 with a narrow defeat to Bermuda and a win over Argentina
during which opening batsman Sacha DeAlwis racked up 196 runs. However,
it was a much different story on Wednesday for DeAlwis and the rest of
his team.
Salman Ahmad made the first  breakthrough
for USA, claiming DeAlwis’ fellow opener Shane Cato for a five-ball
duck, playing around a full length ball to be hit in front and given LBW
with the score on 6 in the third over. Ahmad struck again two overs
later when he got DeAlwis to chase a wide delivery and an edge was sent
to Gurpreet Sandhu at gully. After a bobble, Sandhu took the catch and
DeAlwis walked off for 5 to make it 8 for 2.
Image (right) - USA U-19 opening bowler Salman Ahmad goes up for
an unsuccessful LBW appeal against Cayman Islands batsman John Tweedie.
USA piled on the pressure all morning to bowl out Cayman Islands for 40
in 25 overs. [Courtesy - Peter Della Penna/DreamCricket]
“I guess the batting was revolving around their opener,” said USA
U-19 Coach Robin Singh. “It was a question of getting him out early.
He’s probably scored most of the runs in the past few games so we just
really needed to go and get his wicket and I think we did that quite
easily.”
With the backbone of the Cayman Islands order gone, captain Darren
Cato arrived at number four and tried to provide as much resistance as
possible. He added 20 runs with John Tweedie for the third wicket, but
Tweedie finally departed after facing 23 balls without scoring when he
was clean bowled by Hammad Shahid. Cato fell four runs later for 13,
bowled through the gate by Mital Patel and from there the rout was on in
full force.
After Shahid claimed Edward Bodden for 1 to make it 33 for 5, Sandhu
and Abdulghani came on for a twin spin attack and quickly wiped out the
tail. Extras wound up being top score with 14 while Darren Cato was the
only batsman to reach double figures as Cayman Islands were bowled out
for 40 in 25 overs.
“I think once you get the opposition on the ropes, I think you need
to bury them,” said Singh. “That’s what we want to do in all the games.
Any opposition where we have an advantage, we want to make sure that we
stay with the advantage whether we bat first or we bowl.”
Steven Taylor and Fahad Babar came out and quickly picked off the
runs. Taylor set the tone with a boundary hooked to fine leg on the
first ball and he added three more on his way to 23 not out in 15 balls.
Babar scored 7 in 15. Cayman Islands conceded 11 extras, including a
wide to end the match, as USA reached the target of 41 with 45.2 overs
to spare.
“I still think that even this was quite a weak team,” said Singh. “We
have yet to face any really good opposition. Saying that, I think the
players and our guys have actually improved as matches have gone by. I
think they’re slowly getting into the routine. They understand what
their roles are and what needs to be done. I think the last two games,
we want to give a few guys a run and see how they play because I’m
seeing these guys for the first time, most of these guys. I’m pretty
happy and pretty satisfied with the way we’re going about things.”
All teams have an off day on Thursday before resuming play on Friday
with USA scheduled to take on Bermuda at Brian Piccolo Park. A 30%
chance of showers is in the weather forecast. Any rain that could come
is projected to start around noon. Live coverage of USA’s match against
Bermuda will begin Friday morning at 9:30 a.m. on DreamCricket.
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By Peter Della Penna
The USA U-19 team made it two for two on Tuesday with another
convincing win, this time by 9 wickets over Bahamas on the satellite
field outside Central Broward Regional Park at the ICC Americas U-19
Division One in Lauderhill, Fla. Mital Patel was named Man of the Match
after taking 3 for 9 in six overs.
“Bowling wise I think I’m doing pretty well, just following all the
coach’s directions, line and length, trying to get the ball up,” said
Patel. “Skipper Abhijit has given me a lot of opportunities. I’m trying
to take full advantage of that and the fielders have been helping me a
lot taking all the catches and what not so I’m pretty happy so far.”
Bahamas won the toss and elected to bat on a cool and windy morning
in south Florida. Salman Ahmad and Hammad Shahid opened the attack and
despite beating the bat routinely, could not come away with the same
rewards as yesterday. Shahid took 1 for 7 in five overs while Ahmad
finished with 0 for 7 in five overs a day after claiming four wickets.
Patel came on first change and finally started to make the
breakthroughs to help bring an early end to proceedings. He struck twice
in three balls in the 13th over to remove Julio Jemison for 15 and
captain Jermaine Adderley for a duck to make it 24 for 3.
Leg-spinner Gurpreet Sandhu induced Ashmeid Allie to play on to his
stumps, claiming the number three batsman for 3 in the following over to
make it 24 for 4. Patel struck again in the 19th to get Abhiram Ramesh
for none and the score became 39 for 5.
Sandhu and left-arm spinner
Shayan Abdulghani teamed up to wipe out the rest of the Bahamas order.
Abdulghani took 2 for 7 in five overs with three maidens while Sandhu
had USA’s best figures, finishing with 4 for 16. Steven Taylor finished
with four dismissals behind the stumps for USA as well and Bahamas were
bowled out for 54 in 28.4 overs.
Image (right) - USA U-19 opening batsman Cameron Mirza finished
with 29 not out to top score for the second day in a row. [Courtesy:
Peter Della Penna/DreamCricket]
The USA chase suffered a brief hiccup when Taylor was bowled for 9 by
the seamer Ramesh to start off the fourth over. Otherwise, it was
smooth sailing for USA as they reached the target in 8.5 overs. Cameron
Mirza picked up where he left off on day one to finish 29 not out with
four boundaries. He has 147 runs in two days without being dismissed.
“A little more satisfied, but lots of areas to improve still,” said
USA U-19 coach Robin Singh about his team’s performance. “It’s a long
way to go. This team was not a very strong side. I think they were
probably better than the Argentina team but we bowled much better today
and I think we fielded a little better. We executed stuff a little
better than yesterday.”
USA plays their third game on Wednesday against Cayman Islands inside
the stadium at Central Broward Regional Park. Play is schedule to get
underway at 10 a.m. with covering beginning on DreamCricket at 9:30 a.m.
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By Peter Della Penna
Opening batsman Cameron Mirza scored a sparkling 118 not out to
propel USA to 319 for 5 before Argentina was bowled out for 34 in a
285-run win for USA at the satellite field outside Central Broward
Regional Park on Monday at the ICC Americas U-19 Division One in
Lauderhill, Fla. Mirza was named Man of the Match after setting a USA
U-19 record for an individual score while the 285-run margin is USA’s
biggest victory by runs in international competition at the U-19 level.
“I was a little bit nervous when Abhi won the toss and coach told us
to pad up,” said Mirza. “I was a little bit nervous padding up and
cracked a few nervous jokes and walking out I was nervous, but once I
middled the first ball, I felt good.”
USA won the toss and elected to bat first on a warm sunny morning and
got off to a ferocious start behind Mirza and vice-captain Steven
Taylor. The left-handed Taylor punished Argentina’s attack to bring up
his half-century in only 31 balls, which wasn’t even close to being the
fastest half-century of the day. Taylor was especially strong on his
legs, flicking loose deliveries over square leg and pulling over
midwicket with ease. He finally perished on the first ball after drinks
when he chipped a full ball from leg-spinner Lautaro Musiani straight to
Agustin Husain at short midwicket to make it 116 for 1 in the 19th
over. Taylor wound up with 83 in 59 balls that included eight boundaries
and four sixes.
Musiani struck again  with
back-to-back return catches to get rid of captain Abhijit Joshi for 7
and Fahad Babar for a duck in the 23rd over to make it 142 for 3. Joshi
sent a leading edge to Musiani who took a great one-handed catch over
his head while Babar drove loosely to give a much simpler catch back to
the leg-spinner five balls later.
Image (right) - Cameron Mirza pulls early in his innings. [Courtesy Peter Della Penna/DreamCricket]
Mirza then started to assert himself. After starting cautiously with
Taylor and Joshi, he accelerated the scoring in his partnership with
Trevor Singh, putting on 73 for the fourth wicket. Mirza reached his 50
in 75 balls with six boundaries. He was particularly effective against
the spinners, using his feet to pick off runs and loft a series of
boundaries over mid on.
Singh fell when he missed a pull to off-spinner Ezequiel Gonzalez
Sutil to be bowled for 28, making it 215 for 4 in the 39th. Jodhbir
Singh was caught on the midwicket rope off Sutil for 2 two overs later
to make it 219 for 5.
 Salman
Ahmad joined Mirza as the opener from New Jersey got closer to his
century. He picked off ones and twos through the 80s and 90s before
reaching his century with a single behind point. Mirza celebrated with a
leap and a roar to score the second ever century by a USA U-19 player.
He reached his 100 in 125 balls with 10 boundaries.
Image (left) - Mirza leaps for joy and waves his bat after
completing the single to reach his 100. [Courtesy Peter Della
Penna/DreamCricket]
“It was just relief,” said Mirza about his feelings upon reaching
100. “It was one of the best feelings I’ve had playing cricket.”
At the other end, Ahmed struggled to get the ball away initially,
scoring six singles in his first 10 balls, but went on to produce a
dramatic onslaught to reach a half-century in only 24 balls. He hit four
fours and four sixes in a span of nine balls to demoralize Argentina’s
attack. Ahmad finished 62 not out in 32 balls.
But it was Mirza’s day and he finished the innings with a two off the
last ball to end on 118 off 137 balls with 12 boundaries. The previous
record score for a USA U-19 player was 111 not out by Amer Afzaluddin in a loss to Argentina at the 2001 ICC Americas U-19 tournament in Bermuda. Mirza and Ahmad
put on 100 runs unbeaten for the sixth wicket in 8.5 overs as USA
finished 319 for 5 in 50 overs.
“I think he fits the bill,”  said
USA U-19 coach Robin Singh about his decision to slot Mirza in as an
opener despite the many options available. “He’s somebody who takes his
time and in 50 overs you have a lot of time to play and he fits that
role pretty well.”
Image (right) - Salman Ahmad and Cameron Mirza walk off after an
unbeaten 100-run sixth wicket stand to end the USA innings. [Courtesy
Peter Della Penna/DreamCricket]
USA took the field and only two balls into the chase had Argentina in
the hole when Hammad Shahid clean bowled Pedro Arrighi. Six runs later,
fellow opener Ramiro Escobar drove Shahid to Shayan Abdulghani at short
extra cover to make it 6 for 2. Ahmad then got into the act by taking
the next four wickets reducing Argentina to 11 for 6. He was on a hat
trick at one point and finished with 4 for 10 in six overs.
Mital Patel came on first change and was also on a hat trick in his
first over, taking two in two to make it 27 for 8 in the 13th. Argentina
put up another seven runs before Martin Rost was run out and with
Felipe Nogues unable to bat after injuring himself wicketkeeping in the
first innings, Argentina ended at 34 for 9 in 17.4 overs.
“I think this was probably the weakest team in the tournament so I
think there’s a lot of areas to improve,” said Singh. “Probably we could
have put maybe 75 runs more. We have a pretty good variety. We have a
few good spinners and unfortunately they didn’t get an opportunity to
bowl today, a few good medium pacers as well as some pretty good batters
in the middle so it’s a fairly well-balanced team.”
In the day’s other games, Canada defeated Bahamas by 9 wickets at
Brian Piccolo Park. Akash Shah took a hat trick and finished with six
wickets for Canada as they bowled Bahamas out for 65 in 29.1 overs
before chasing the runs in 17.5 overs. Bermuda won by 4 runs over Cayman
Islands in a game reduced to 41 overs. Cayman Islands put a serious
fight up, bowling out Bermuda for 181 in 29.4 overs and looked set for a
big upset with Sacha DeAlwis at the crease. DeAlwis was bowled for 93
with 15 needed to win in the 39th over and six wickets still left in
hand, but the remaining batsman just couldn’t reach the boundary and
with four needed to tie on the last ball, a leg side delivery was missed
and a run out resulted on an attempted bye.
The USA U-19 team continues their tournament play with a game against
Bahamas on Tuesday at the artificial satellite pitch outside CBRP at 10
a.m. Live coverage on DreamCricket begins at 9:30 a.m. CORRECTION: This article has been updated to reflect that Mirza was the second player to score a century playing for a USA U-19 team. The first was Amer Afzaluddin, whose record of 111 not out in 2001 was broken by Mirza.
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Now, you can get all the USA Cricket updates via Facebook. Also follow us on Twitter via @dreamcricket
By Peter Della Penna
While most of the country is under a blanket of snow and wintry
weather, the 14 players chosen to represent USA’s U-19 team will be
enjoying 80 degrees of sunshine this week in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
They’ll be joined by teams representing Argentina, Bahamas, Bermuda,
Canada and Cayman Islands who are all competing at the ICC Americas U-19
Division One tournament.
Two spots are up for grabs this week for the ICC U-19 World Cup
Global Qualifier, expected to be held in Ireland this summer. USA and
Canada were the two teams to advance from the Americas in 2009 and while
fans are hopeful that USA will advance playing on home soil, the
competition will be intense at the top.
At the 2009 ICC Americas
U-19 event in Toronto, USA had an easy time against Bahamas, Argentina
and Cayman Islands. They defeated each opponent by 249 runs, 9 wickets
and 161 runs respectively. Not much is expected to change in terms of
the outcome of those matches this time around either.
Image (right): Hammad Shahid is one of four returning players
that participated for USA at the 2010 ICC U-19 World Cup. [Courtesy:
Peter Della Penna/DreamCricket]
So it’s very likely that USA will be jockeying with defending
champion Canada and 2007 champion Bermuda for the top two positions.
Canada only returns one of their 15-man squad that went to last
year’s U-19 World Cup in New Zealand. That player is Manny Aulakh, who
took five wickets at the ICC Americas U-19 in 2009 including two opening
the bowling against USA. Crucially, 16-year-old batting phenom Nitish
Kumar is not in the squad for this tournament because he is part of
Canada’s squad at the 2011 World Cup.
However, they do have other promising youngsters in the ranks. Among
those are Nikhil Dutta, Trevor Manoosingh and Axay Patel. Canada also
has the advantage of having gone through a training camp with warm-up
matches in Trinidad prior to traveling to Florida for the start of this
tournament.
Bermuda is looking to overcome the loss of Deunte Darrell, who was
the MVP of the island’s annual two-day Cup Match between Somerset and
St. George’s but was suspended for breaching the board’s code of conduct
on a tour to Barbados. Kamau Leverock, the nephew of former Bermuda
national team player Dwayne Leverock, is an exciting young batsman
hoping to fill the void left by Darrell. Leverock recently traveled with
the senior team to Dubai for their two-week tour in preparation for the
ICC WCL Division Two tournament this April.
The team is captained by 17-year-old off-spinner Joshua Gilbert, who
already has first-class experience on his resume having played against
the UAE in an Intercontinental Shield match last year in which he had
the team’s best figures, taking 3 for 85 in the first innings. Other
players returning from the squad that played in Canada at the ICC
Americas U-19 in 2009 are Kevon Fubler, Greg Maybury, Tre Manders and
Lateef Trott. Christian Burgess, who was named Best Wicketkeeper at the
2009 ICC Americas U-15 Northern Division Tournament in New York, is also
in the squad.
USA returns four players
from their 2010 ICC U-19 World Cup squad. Vice-captain Steven Taylor
and captain Abhijit Joshi could form a potent left-right hand
combination at the top of the order. However, the overall batting
strength is a little thin compared to the previous squad. Just like in
2009, this year’s crop has plenty of experience as openers but it
remains to be seen how well some of them adjust to being shifted down
the order. Jodhbir Singh is perhaps the most talented of the newcomers
and scored a century at the U-19 Western Conference in August.
Image (right): Jodhbir Singh is a bright newcomer to USA's U-19 squad. [Courtesy Peter Della Penna/DreamCricket]
As for the bowling unit, the four players from southern California
all bring something different to the table and will fill key roles for
USA. Hammad Shahid and Salman Ahmad are likely to open the bowling while
Shayan Abdulghani is a talented left-arm spinner and Gurpreet Sandhu is
the specialist leg-spinner in the team. North West off-spinner Pranay
Suri has a strong chance to make a big impact as well.
USA’s tournament gets underway against Argentina on the artificial
turf satellite field at Central Broward Regional Park in Lauderhill on
Monday morning at 9:30 a.m. DreamCricket will have live coverage for all
of USA’s matches during the week.
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Now, you can get all the USA Cricket updates via Facebook. Also follow us on Twitter via @dreamcricket
 Los Angeles based All-American born cricket team comprising mainly homeless men and ex-gang members - "The Compton Homies & the Popz," is touring Australia this month taking on sides from universities as well as inner-city and community-based teams such as the Urban Seeds, Redfern All Blacks and the Australian Indigenous Mentoring Experience.
When not winning matches (which they are not), they sure are winning hearts, creating goodwill, celebrating and promoting cricketing values, and of course, introducing their brand of hip hop music to Australia.
"We wrote original rap songs about our experiences in cricket and where we'd like to see cricket go," the side's captain Theo Hayes told ABC. "We break the cricket language down to a sense that kids in inner cities can relate to and it kinda of draws them closer just because of that energy."
The Guardian newspaper voted the group's cricket song "Bullets" the best cricket song of all time calling it the "unlikeliest piece of hip hop you will ever hear." (see video below).
The club, which was started in 1995 by homeless activist Ted Hayes and British Hollywood movie producer Katy Haber, offers an alternative path to gang affiliation, crime and incarceration.
"We got these youngsters, we recruited them before the gangs could," Theo Hayes told ABC. "That's very key, is getting a hold of these young children's lives and giving them something positive to steer towards before the gangs get them."
"[We tell the kids to] play every ball that's given to you in life as it comes to you with respect," Theo philosophized.
According to the club's website, countless youth including Latino and African-American ex-gang members, have been saved by the combined efforts of Ted Hayes, who is Theo's father, and Haber along with the help from volunteer coaches, including the Late Leo Magnus, and UK Cricketer Paul Smith. The rules espoused by this sport in turn teaches these kids important lessons that they can appropriate into their own life circumstances.
 For Hugh Snelgrove, the team's Australian ambassador, the team was "a cross between the Jamaican bobsled team and [the film] Boyz n the Hood. They're doing a positive thing in the community and using an innovative way to do it." Incidentally, this is the team's fifth tour - they toured England in 1995, 1997, 1999 and 2001.
Disney picked up the rights to make a movie about the team in 1995. In 1999 two documentary films, Joan Chen’s “Cricket Outta Compton” and Monica Magyarosi’s “Cricket” documented the Homies tour of the UK. In 2002, the late Peter Hemmings, the then Director of The LA Opera, commissioned Michael Abels and Bernardo Solano to write an opera inspired by the CCC’s message. It was subsequently performed by the LA Youth Opera in schools around LA for two successive years.
For Emidio Cazarez, 28, a Latino member of the club for 14 years, the club has given him a new direction. "I've gone to places I never thought I'd go: to Buckingham Palace, to meet Prince William. Who would have thought that I'd be there drinking tea with him," Emidio told Fox News Latino.
Theo Hayes thanked the Southern California Cricket Association in an interview with the ABC. "The Southern California Cricket Association have the park fields and they do get some professional cricket tournaments going on over there ... every once in a while we're blessed and graced to compete on that field."
Pics and videos courtesy of Homies and the Popz (http://cricketouttacompton.com.au)
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Now, you can get all the USA Cricket updates via Facebook. Also follow us on Twitter via @dreamcricket
By Peter Della Penna
On Monday, USA’s U-19 team will begin their quest toward qualification for the 2012 ICC U-19 World Cup. Four players have returned from the 2010 World Cup squad, including Abhijit Joshi, the 18-year-old batsman who was named to lead the squad in the ICC Americas U-19 Division One in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and he’s thrilled with the opportunity to captain his country.
“It’s a big honor for me to lead the nation, lead the side and I’m looking forward to the responsibility,” said Joshi. “Hopefully we can go a long way in this tournament.”
After excelling at the U-15 level, Joshi had a rough adjustment playing for USA’s U-19 team in 2009 and 2010. However, he feels he gained a lot of experience from the qualifying tournaments in Toronto as well as the U-19 World Cup in New Zealand and is hoping the lessons learned from those events will allow him to have better results this time around.
Image (right): 2011 USA U-19 captain Abhijit Joshi. [Courtesy - Chidambar Joshi]
“Personally it was not the best I could ask for, but I learned so much from those three tournaments, both Canada tournaments and New Zealand,” said Joshi. “It was definitely a learning curve for me. I learned everything from fitness, skills, technique, how to handle pressure, mental toughness. It was a learning experience in every aspect of the game. From those experiences, I hope to use those experiences to show the team to do well.”
Joshi previously captained USA’s U-15 team in Bermuda at an ICC regional event in 2008 and is keen to do whatever he can to help the side make this summer’s Global Qualifier in Ireland. Cameron Mirza, Pranay Sury and Kalim Ahmed are first time USA U-19 players who were also part of the 2008 USA U-15 team and Joshi feels that having played with many players from the squad going up through the age groups will allow the team to gel quickly.
“I captained a lot of them in Bermuda in 2008 for Under-15 and I don’t think anyone’s new for me,” said Joshi. “I know everybody pretty well so it’s gonna be a fun experience. I think the key is gonna be getting the team together and chemistry for the first tournament. That’s going to be the key for us to do well.”
The captain is also hoping that his fellow teammates who were part of the World Cup journey to New Zealand last year will provide insight to the less experienced players in the team.
“I think the biggest strength is we have four experienced guys who already played the World Cup,” said Joshi. “I think that’s a big plus point because we’ve been to the high stage of our age level. We’ve been to the high stage and we learned a lot from the World Cup and we got tips from Dipak Patel, other coaches in New Zealand. So that’s a big plus point for our team. For example, the fast bowlers can learn off [Hammad] Shahid and Salman [Ahmad] and then the batsmen, Steven [Taylor] and I can share what we learned.”
Joshi is also excited to get a chance to play under Robin Singh. The 18-year-old has prior experience working with Singh and is looking forward to getting a chance to study under him once more.
“In ’03 or ’04, Robin Singh had come to our [Chicago] academy to coach us,” said Joshi. “How old was I then, 12 or 11? I don’t know if he remembers that. I remember very well that he came and helped us out a bit and coached us for a couple days. So I was like, ‘That’s cool. I hope he remembers me.’”
“He’s one of India’s best fielders they ever produced. It’s gonna be a good experience. It’s gonna be fun. I bet his expectations are high too so I’m looking forward to that.”
The squad will be arriving in Florida on Friday night and Saturday morning and will have a day and a half to get acclimatized to conditions before the start of play on Monday. The players got a preview of what the wicket will be like at the Central Broward Regional Park Stadium when they went through trials there two weekends ago. Joshi says he’s not feeling any pressure whatsoever as the host team in this year’s tournament.
“No, no pressure at all,” said Joshi. “It’s another game. It’s no pressure at all. If you go in thinking pressure in these kind of games, then what’s gonna happen if we make the World Cup? There’s no pressure right now. You go out there and play cricket.”
Like most of his teammates, Joshi is chomping at the bit to play Canada and while the game against the border rival will be the biggest matchup of the tournament for USA, Joshi doesn’t want the team to look too far ahead and lose focus in earlier contests.
“I’m excited to play Canada most,” said Joshi. “We lost to them every time at Under-19 level and Under-15 levels we lost to them closely. This time we look to beat them and go 5-0. But we’re looking to take every game step by step and not get ahead of ourselves. Canada is the last game we have on Saturday so we’ve got four games before that.”
The USA U-19 team starts play on Monday against Argentina on the artificial turf satellite field at CBRP followed on Tuesday by a match versus Bahamas on the same field. Wednesday, the team moves into the stadium to play Cayman Islands before a rest day on Thursday. On Friday the team will play Bermuda on the turf wicket at Brian Piccolo Park before going back inside the stadium on Saturday to take on Canada. Matches are tentatively scheduled to start every day at 9:30 a.m. DreamCricket.com will have live coverage for all of USA’s matches at the tournament.
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