USA Cricketer : ACF

USA Cricket: West Indies star batswoman Stefanie Taylor to appear at Atlanta Women's T20

openingbat — Thu, 23 May 2013 14:20:00 GMT

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Atlanta, GA – Georgia Women Cricket Association (GWCA) today announced that Ms. Stafanie Taylor, the West Indies’ hard-hitting batswoman will be the West Indies Cricket Board’s (WICB) Women’s Cricket Ambassador at the 3rd Annual Atlanta Women’s T20 Tournament. Ms. Taylor’s presence at the tournament is being made possible through the kind courtesy of Atlantis Cricket Club – New York.

The American Cricket Federation (ACF) is the title sponsor of the USACA approved tournament being staged this Memorial Day Weekend (May 25-26) in Atlanta, GA. The four participating teams are defending champions Atlantis, Atlantic Region Lady Eagles, a Cayman Islands Women’s club XI, and host team Atlanta Pearls.

Ms. Taylor is the International Cricket Council (ICC) 2012 ODI Women’s Cricketer of the Year. The 22 year-old made her ODI debut for the West Indies against Ireland in 2008 at age 17. In 64 ODI appearances, she has scored 2,444 runs at an average of 43.64, including four centuries and sixteen 50s, while in 44 T20s she has amassed 1,161 runs at an average of 33.17 per appearance. The all-rounder has also captured 80 ODI and 48 T20 wickets, in 64 and 44 matches respectively.

According to tournament organizer, Petal Samuels, “GWCA is delighted to have Ms. Taylor at the tournament. I have no doubt that her participation will be a plus for all the competing teams and the tournament, and it will serve to help develop women’s cricket in the USA. I am inviting women and men to come out to see Ms. Taylor in action on Saturday, May 25 at Creel Park, 2775 Creel Road, College Park, Georgia.”

The WICB, as a kind gesture, has graciously agreed to Ms. Taylor’s participation in the tournament and as its Women’s Cricket Ambassador. Earlier this year the Jamaica-born batswoman unleashed a remarkable 171 off 137 balls against Sri Lanka women in Mumbai, India, as the West Indies women crushed their Sri Lankan counterparts by a whopping 209 run margin.

In an invited comment, Ms. Taylor who is currently vacationing in the USA said that she was looking forward to the tournament and doing whatever is possible to help women’s cricket grow in this part of the world.

USA Cricket: Chanderpaul and Pollock add lustre to Philadelphia Cricket Festival

openingbat — Mon, 13 May 2013 01:00:00 GMT

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By Venu Palaparthi

The Philadelphia CC outfield is just not your average cricket outfield . Sir Garfield Sobers, previous Philadelphia Cricket Festival Guest of Honor called the venue "amongst the finest he had seen anywhere in the world!" The hallowed turf has been mowed for 159 years.

Pic (Right and below): Shaun Pollock and Shiv Chanderpaul sign autographs at Philadelphia Cricket Festival [All pictures Courtesy of Paul Hensley, CC Morris Library]

If the spectacular ground, the storied pavilion and the splendid outfield were not enough of a feast for a cricket die-hard, there were two former Test captains walking around the venue, signing autographs and sharing their impressions of cricket.

Shiv Chanderpaul and Shaun Pollock were at the festival.   The latter was this year’s guest of honor.   As for Shiv Chanderpaul, the understated star just turned out for his Florida club, Sarasota CC.

West Haven CC probably never imagined that they would be in a final against a side whose lead batsman had scored 10,830 Test runs, 8,778 ODI runs and 21,951 First Class runs to date and continues to amass runs at every opportunity. I overheard someone say, “They will go back with stories to tell their mates about the time they played against Chanderpaul's team.”

Chanderpaul featured in a trademark inning - a risk-free and classy enterprise that achieved a strike rate of 150.   Together with his partners Sreenath (27) and Nikunj Patel, he took his side from 11 for 1 to 53 for 2 and then onward to 101 before retiring after making 42 runs (off 28 balls).   Some overs later, it was Nikunj’s turn to retire, also on 42, the score now reading 143 for 3.   By the time the Sarasota innings ended, they had scored 164. In reply, West Haven CC folded on 84. Prasad Sahasrabudhe’s 35 from 29 balls was the best score for the visitors from Connecticut.

Shaun Pollock was a consummate gentleman. The guest of honor more than made his presence felt. He played one game for each of the five host clubs at the tournament.  When he was not playing, he was seen discussing the game with the spectators.

While in Philly, Pollock also made time for other sports - on May 3rd, he threw the first pitch in the Phillies baseball match against the Marlins.   The next morning, on May 4th, Shaun played golf at the Merion Golf Club, which will be hosting the US Open next month, the fifth time in the club’s history. Historians will remember that the golf club was spun off from the Merion Cricket Club in 1896.

Spectators at the Philadelphia Cricket Club ground included the who's who of American cricket. The recipient of New Inning's 2011 Bart King Lifetime Achievement, and the grand old man of American cricket - Al Reeves was there. In a brief interaction with the author, Reeves spoke about Australia's tour of England in which Hedley Verity troubled Don Bradman in England.   When I returned, I did a bit of research and realized he may have been talking about the 1934 series. Also present at the venue was USYCA’s Jamie Harrison and ACF's Mike Thomas.   The two organizations had just announced a partnership the previous day.   Lloyd Jodah was there discussing ACC's growth.   CC Morris Library's Paul Hensley was busy taking pictures. Cricket novelists Ewart Rouse and Dr. Vikram Dravid were spotted signing books at the event. Suresh Menon, Editor of Wisden India Almanack, was enjoying Chanderpaul's artistry. Deepak Katte of USACUA was taking in the final after officiating the morning game. Dr. Tahir Maqsood of GPCL was busy making plans for an end of season T20 event.

Postscript: For me personally, the trip was a memorable one. Ten years ago, I was passing by the area and stopped at the Philadelphia CC after seeing a sign for the club.   This year, my club, the Amwell Valley CC, won the Wanderers trophy at the festival.

More pictures:

Sarasota CC poses with the trophy

Shaun Pollock joins spectators on the boundary line

Shaun Pollock poses with Mike Thomas of ACF and Al Reeves of BOCC

USA Cricket: American Cricket Federation registers 50 members. Online payment mechanism draws praise.

openingbat — Mon, 08 Apr 2013 13:40:00 GMT

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Two weeks after it began accepting members on March 19th, the American Cricket Federation (ACF) reported that it had registered its first fifty members.

'This is the first opportunity for US cricketers and cricket organizations to take charge of US Cricket through a truly representative body of all stakeholders. Add your voice, participate in a true democratic election this year,' ACF said in a media release announcing the milestone.

“Such early volume is heartening” commented Mike Thomas, ACF's acting Treasurer. “Together with the broad geographic spread of applicants, it gives the first indication of the extent to which there is significant resonance with the ACF’s vision, goals and principles of governance.”

The ACF was founded by a large group of experienced cricketers and administrators united in the belief that US cricket needed and deserved a new direction. Incorporated on October 9, 2012, it is currently managed by a Steering Committee whose members and biographies may be found on the ACF website.

From its inception, ACF drew praise for its inclusive approach to membership. Cricket enthusiasts can become members of the organization for as little as $10 per year. Membership forms have been made available online together with an online payment mechanism.

'[ACF's] inclusive spirit mandates the provision for several classes of members and also recognizes specific designations such as Women, College, Youth and Softball cricketers, besides Clubs and Development Administrators in order to provide them with a voice,' the organization noted in its media release announcing the adoption of its constititution.

'Our needs for development funds are great, but so are the cumulative numbers of players in the U.S. and their Clubs and the Leagues they play in. A united investment in the future of US Cricket not only will bring about change quicker, but will also provide the opportunity for you to make a tangible contribution toward that change,' the organization noted.

USA Cricket: Does ACF have a chance?

openingbat — Tue, 12 Feb 2013 03:01:00 GMT

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By Venu Palaparthi

Ways to keep control perpetually.

I recently came across some interesting observations by Alastair Smith on CarnegieCouncil.org. It not only makes for spectacular reading, you might see in it a reflection of USA cricket.

"We're going to tell you that all organizations, whether they are democracies, dictatorships, corporations, sports federations—I love talking about sports federations by the way - they all operate on the same principles: that people are trying to get their way and they want to stay in power, the people at the top.”

“Rule number one…is be beholden to as small a number of people as possible." Elections, he says, are "wonderful inventions for corrupt leaders. People keep thinking of elections as legitimacy - 'Let's have an election because the government will be legitimate.' It's not legitimate if what actually happens is - we know what the result is before the election."

Speaking about the purpose of such leaders, he says: “This is the whole purpose: you make people worse off except those people you choose not to make worse off. That makes them very loyal to you." His advice to such leaders: "never be nice to the people at the expense of those who matter.”

Smith then illustrates his rules with the example of FIFA. He says just 12 votes are needed to determine who's going to be the soccer organization’s president and where the location of the World Cup games will be held. "So, surprisingly enough you've got a budget of $4 billion and you need 12 votes."

If similarities to American cricket are not immediately obvious, then you should read Part 1 and Part 2 of my series.

Regardless of your affiliation, it is a fact that the American cricket community is at a fork in the road. USACA has shown us a ‘selectoral’ path, where somewhat coincidentally, 12 votes have decided the destiny of thousands of fans and players. And if you didn't miss the irony, ACF’s mission of expanding democracy by greatly broadening the spectrum of participation has also resonated with exactly 12 leagues.

Will ACF succeed? A look at the math.

It is safe to assume that a majority of the twelve ACF signatory leagues will become members of the ACF once the organization begins accepting members.

There are another 20 USACA member leagues that were disenfranchised - these are leagues that USACA has said are no longer in good standing. These leagues have not yet expressed solidarity with ACF. And there are an estimated 40 soft ball and hard ball leagues that have never been part of USACA.

These 60 leagues, and/or their constituent clubs and players are going to determine whether ACF will continue to gain traction. The soft ball leagues are both fertile territory and a solid hedge for the ACF. There have been no attempts to date to integrate these soft ball cricket leagues under a national federation. Of course, ACF's success also depends on its acceptance by individual fans and supporters.

One thing is clear, USACA can no longer take ACF lightly. There is a fair amount of curiosity surrounding ACF and many cricket organizations are considering ACF's membership invitation. I have personally received over a dozen calls regarding ACF and USACA in the past two weeks. The questions are on expected lines. Can ACF actually provide any services? Can the people that are steering ACF be trusted? Will ICC's continued recognition of USACA affect ACF's chances of success? How is ACF different from the organizations that have previously attempted to take on USACA? What if USACA builds trust, revamps its constitution and extends an olive branch?

What if USACA discovers God, cleans up governance?

In 2007, USACA revised the constitution, which was approved by only 97 of the 677 clubs then in existence (only 180 clubs voted). There were a lot of demands to make further improvements, but an ICC imposed deadline was looming. Despite the 14% mandate, USACA still obtained ICC approval and was reinstated as an Associate member. As Deb Das wrote on CricInfo: “Beyond steps to curb the most flagrant abuses of power, the new [USACA] constitution offers little safeguards against usurpation of authority and the maintenance of conspiratorial secrecy.”

This is the constitution under which USACA has operated since 2007. There has been much talk of revising and improving the constitution for years now but very little action. ACF on the other hand has published its draft constitution which, as I have written in my first and second parts, satisfactorily addresses many of the deficiencies contained in USACA’s constitution.

As someone who has observed USACA for some time, I can almost predict the next act in this drama.

USACA will respond to ACF’s onward march by convening a committee or hiring an outside consultant to review its constitution. Without a doubt, a report will be produced and the board will announce that it will consider the report’s recommendations at the next board meeting, in 100 days or never. In this manner, USACA will assuage the anger of the few who care in the near term and perhaps placate the ICC as well. It will also take some of the shine off ACF’s efforts.

However, it is an inescapable fact that ACF has the advantage on the constitution and USACA has a lot of catching up to do. It is also a fact that for USACA, the trust deficit extends beyond the constitution. There is no doubt in my mind that while USACA plays defense, ACF will continue to make inroads.

USACA naysayers will find in ACF a compelling alternative. ACF will also find traction in areas and among leagues where USACA is an unknown entity.

Shouldn't this conversation really be about execution?

Alright, let's talk about execution under Gladstone Dainty's stewardship since 2003. At the December 2012 AGM, the attendees were given a document dated September 9, 2008, titled "A Vision for USACA." Mr. Dainty told those assembled that the document remained as valid in 2012 as it did in 2008. Now, Mr. Dainty is not known to indulge in theatrics. This was viewed as a tacit admission that there hasn't been much progress.

Push the dial back some more, this time to 2005. That year, under Dainty's leadership, USACA published a document titled “Strategic Development Plan for 2006-2007”. In that plan, USACA said that it would have a Junior and Youth Development Program for U-13, U-15, U-17 and U-19 and that it would also have an U-23 A squad. It also contemplated a series of national competitions for leagues, clubs and regions. Among the more notable objectives were - "improving information and communications" and "restoring USACA's image." We all know how that went.

Now, push the dial back a bit further to 2002 when USACA first published a five-year plan for the 2002-2006 period. In that plan, USACA wrote that it planned to "attain ODI status by 2006 and thereby qualify automatically for 2007 World Cup." Similar ambitions were expressed in a variety of areas: "Increase participation of players from its current 10,000 to 50,000 in a five-year period, certify 2000 umpires, 2000 coaches, [and] at least 150 advanced certified coaches." "Cricket Administration in The United States of America shall adopt state of the art technology to attain optimum results from the implementation of its strategic plan for the period until 2006." Don't even ask for an appraisal of that plan.

Were there no bright spots at all since 2002 for USACA, you ask? Yes, there were a few.

USACA Treasurer John Thickett and former CEO Don Lockerbie steered the organization in the direction of a commercial deal, which by 2010 seemed imminent. Its progress since then has been slow, but it would be unwise to write it off just yet.

Thickett also made sure that tax filings and other financial data were published on the USACA website. In another positive step, some four years after USACUA proposed to form a representative and inclusive umpires federation, the USACA president finally acknowledged that USACUA needed to be supported. Thanks to New Zealand Cricket's help, USACA also made Lockerbie's 'Destination USA' goal a reality. Both the Pearls Cup in 2010 and the two T20s between New Zealand and the West Indies in 2012 were steps in the right direction.

But if you look at the 10 years since the 2002 plan, USACA has been singularly unimpressive. It has not succeeded in shaking off its inability to build sustainable development programs and processes, has not communicated effectively, did not build alliances among the sport's many fans and followers, has not partnered with other organizations that are doing yeoman's work in promoting cricket, and has failed to align its own board members in one direction. It has placed all its eggs in one basket - everything would be alright once the commercial arrangement fell in place.

It did not help at all that this period was punctuated by lawsuits, intrigue, resignations, long periods without tournaments, suspensions and expulsions. The membership, which was never taken into confidence, gradually became alienated, especially after the 2011-12 election drama.

And yet, USACA faces no serious threat to its existence even though its current membership has whittled to a handful of leagues. Instead of mounting an Arab Spring, the dissidents have sought refuge elsewhere.

Strange as it may sound, the other thing that USACA has going for it is... things cannot get any worse! From ICC suspensions to teetering on the brink of financial doom, USACA has seen it all during the last decade. In fact, there is reason to be cautiously optimistic about USACA's fortunes in the near term. First, USACA just hired a new CEO, Darren Beazley. His resume is impressive and he will likely remedy at least some of the issues. Also, if CHALLC begins writing checks, the organization will certainly be in a better position to effect changes.

Unlike USACA, which has generally promised the world and delivered an atlas, ACF has announced very few initiatives and generally delivered. ACF’s website and social media presence may not win it Webby awards, but the organization has outperformed USACA, whose online snafus are by now part of cricket folklore. On the tournament front, the ACF T20 was much appreciated. The organization's Orlando meeting was definitely more open than anything that USACA has delivered to date.

For ACF, the key near-term challenge is to scale up its plans, set new milestones and continue to exceed expectations.

ACF is in a honeymoon period. In order to maintain its momentum, it needs to conduct U-15, U-19 and women's tournaments in addition to the T20 tournament, it needs to have open townhall style meetings in addition to the annual meeting and it needs to launch programs and services for all its members. It must also attempt to create a soft ball cricket tournament and find a way to integrate that sub-community into the national framework. Everything that ACF does must be measurable and reports must be provided to the constituents.

ACF is unburdened by the past and has more energy and passion to prove that it can succeed. Its success will be measured by its ability to set itself meaningful goals and actually achieve them.

[In tomorrow's Part 4: Does ICC care? And why competition is not such a bad thing for cricket?]

[Disclaimer: The author is a co-founder of DreamCricket Academy, which is a former associate member of USACA (now a USACA member-in-waiting for over six months); a former representative of CLNJ on USACA's Atlantic Region board (CLNJ, which is NJ's largest league, was disqualified by USACA in 2012); and an administrator of CLNJ-Youth, the largest youth cricket program in the state of New Jersey. He also served as CLNJ's delegate to the ACF when ACF was not yet incorporated. However, the opinions expressed and the inputs on ACF constitution are his own and should not be viewed as CLNJ's or DreamCricket Academy's inputs.]

USA Cricket: ACF constitution takes cricket into newer territories - Part II

openingbat — Fri, 01 Feb 2013 11:29:00 GMT

Now, you can get all the USA Cricket updates via Facebook. Also follow us on Twitter via @dreamcricket

By Venu Palaparthi

In Part One of this series on ACF's draft constitution, I analyzed whether the ACF constitution would have been more effective in the context of the many issues we have experienced since 2011. My conclusion was that it had adequate safeguards and was generally well thought out.

An organization surely cannot exist to right the wrongs of another. I am going to quote verbatim from Mike Thomas' article from June 11, 2012, titled "Suggestions for those that would rule, reform or replace," a brilliant piece that influenced ACF during its early days. I know first-hand because I participated in some of those early discussions as a representative of the Cricket League of New Jersey, let there be no mystery to that. My league had been disqualified and our appeal was turned down. It was not the best of times.

That is when Mike's piece appeared on DreamCricket. "Frustration, disgust and a sense of helplessness are powerful disincentives to commitment," he wrote in his piece. "Get the Constitution right to start with, preferably both decentralized and with strong independent oversight of the Executive." Then, Mike wrote, "win the hearts and minds of all cricket constituencies – by effort, achievement and providing service."

But how successful was ACF in making that its own vision? This is precisely what I want to explore today in Part Two.

Importance of winning hearts and minds

Let me first illustrate the importance of winning the hearts and minds with the story of a town nearer home called Edison, N.J. Now, Edison is known to have 'America’s liveliest Little India' according to The New York Times.

Several Edison schools have cricket grounds. The town has 400 Indian businesses and Indians make up roughly 25 percent of the population. The Oak Tree Road area wore a festive look during the 2011 ICC World Cup. Not one, but two radio stations broadcast cricket talk shows into this town. TV Asia, the only cable broadcaster of domestic cricket, is based here. Edison is also the home of the Edison Cricket Club - a club which is visited by cricketing legends and dignitaries each year. Its members include U.S. Congressman Frank Pallone and N.J. Deputy Speaker Upendra Chivukula.

I am certain Edison contributes a sum north of $1 million to the cricketing eco-system. The town easily accounts for a few thousand Willow or Neo subscribers, and per capita, residents play or watch more cricket than any other town in the country.

Yes, Cricket is part of Edison’s DNA. In my estimate, just this one town could provide enough funds to match USA cricket's 2011 development spend.

But Edison, whose cricketing interest has been the subject of articles in magazines ranging from SPAN to ESPN, might as well be on another planet when it comes to USACA. USACA neither offers individual memberships nor grants voting privileges to clubs, so the town’s large base of cricket fans does not count at all.

Pic (Right): U.S. Congressman Frank Pallone is welcome at Edison Cricket Club. But he may not become a member of USACA, even if he wanted to.

Edison is not alone. In towns across the USA, there are hundreds of thousands of cricket fans and followers, hundreds of teams and clubs, and dozens of leagues which could contribute to the game’s growth.

I am not suggesting at all that USA cricket be limited to immigrants. I am asking that USA cricket places reliance on their love and devotion for the game as a solid foundation on which to build cricket. Other sports including soccer have done it, why not cricket?

For that to happen, the national governing body must be willing to create a large community of players, administrators, fans and followers. Is ACF willing to go the extra mile and does its constitution permit that?

The answer is a resounding Yes!

Everyone is welcome

Article 3 ("Membership") of ACF's constitution is an open embrace - "Membership in the Federation shall be open to: (a) Any youth player, adult player, coach, trainer, manager, administrator, official, fan or other individual active or interested in the sport of cricket. (b) Any affiliated sports organization or amateur sports organization."

This is similar to other world class sports organizations. Here is an excerpt from the Membership section of the bylaws for USA Baseball: “Any individual or sports organization active in baseball, or any individual or sports organization interested in the advancement of baseball in the United States and throughout the world.” USA Baseball specifically states that Board approval is not necessary for this class of members.

In comparison, membership in the USACA constitution’s membership section is somewhat exclusive - "Membership in USACA is open to all organized cricket leagues, clubs, colleges and universities, with a verifiable membership base of at least fifteen members."

A by-product of this exclusivity is that USACA has fewer members.

Also, when you have an organization that is accountable only to a dozen members, you don’t have to worry about discussion or debate. Organizations that have fewer members can quell what little disagreement they encounter through patronage or handouts to a carefully selected few. On the other hand, openness brings with it transparency and broader participation makes for a more effective democracy.

And a vote for all

While continuing to provide a strong voice to the leagues (7 votes on the Board and 3 on the Advisory and Judicial Committee), ACF balances that by providing a direct voice to clubs and individuals (3 votes on the Board and 8 votes on the Advisory and Judicial Committee). Add to that the presence of an independent director, and ACF ends up with each constituency getting a voice while also ensuring that nobody has absolute power.

Combined with better member communications, this could also serve to energize individuals and clubs, especially those that want a more active role.

Softball leagues

Another area where ACF blazes a fresh trail is that it recognizes softball, tapeball or heavy tennis ball cricket as a bona fide form of cricket. Most youth cricketers start with a softball or heavy tennis ball before they graduate to the leather ball. A foam filled ball is the best way to introduce a newbie to the game.

Softball cricket accounts for a large portion of the cricket played in this country. Softball leagues and hardball leagues have synergistic relations in cities across USA - grounds are often shared and players cross over from one format to the other. At the purely recreational end of the spectrum, community and charitable organizations frequently organize cricket camps or tournaments where the heavy tennis ball is used. This format is thought to be more inviting and user-friendly.

By welcoming softball, tapeball or heavy tennis ball leagues and ensuring representation for them, the Federation allows itself a larger base on which to draw.

However, the softball phenomenon will need to be carefully managed. Firstly, softball leagues are likely to be intolerant of unfair treatment. So the provision of one representative for softball format on the Board and one representative on the Judicial Committee may need to be reviewed once the floodgates open and ACF's membership drive yields a sizable number of softball leagues.

On the other hand, the inevitable clamour for representation by softball leagues must necessarily be seen alongside the undisputable fact that hardball cricket is still the highest form of the game. These are still early days and perhaps a middle path will emerge that harmonizes the two formats as the organization evolves.

Lastly, ACF must plan tournaments and member benefits that meet the expectations of this constituency.

Lower fees, greater incentives

That brings us to membership fees and incentives. ACF has indicated that it would charge membership dues of $10 for individuals, $50 for clubs, $300 for softball leagues and $500 for hardball leagues. USA Rugby draws a portion of its revenue by charging between $5 and $65 for individual members and $150 per club, and I have always felt that USA Cricket needed to get off the high horse.

Pic (right): US Lacrosse offers a range of benefits, some of its own and some through its sponsors and partners.

Three years ago at USACA’s Dallas AGM, when USACA pondered individual membership for $25, I thought it was a stroke of genius and gave the proposal a lot of play in my coverage of the AGM. As with other USACA initiatives, that proposal went nowhere fast. The ACF's $10 individual membership rate is brilliant. I must applaud ACF for reducing the gap between intent and execution.

ACF constitution not only treats individual members as a crowd-funding opportunity, it grants them votes and has already stated that it will provide them with member incentives.

Also, the ACF is accepting club members at $50 and giving them a vote. This is also a key differentiator. Finally, ACF's league membership rate of $500 is much lower than what a league currently pays USACA. Of course, affordability should not be confused with acceptability. Ultimately, ACF's success will depend on the services it provides.

From what I have seen, ACF is also eager to embrace technology as a differentiator. ACF has already launched an online payment mechanism for membership. Also noteworthy is that, when the organization launched its draft constitution, it sought feedback by making an electronic feedback form available on its website besides encouraging feedback via Facebook.

I recommend that ACF also consider accepting donations, just as USA Rugby does, once it gets its 501(c)3 status.

Introducing cricket to Americans

The most laudable guiding principles are in Article 2 of the ACF constitution titled "Purpose."

This section serves as a compass for the organization's long journey. Yes, ACF wants to be a national governing body and promote the sport and all that jazz. But among the 19 sections that comprise the organization's purpose, the one thing that jumps out is this line:

"Promote and support the introduction of the sport of cricket to individuals and communities who are not familiar with or traditionally associated with the sport of cricket in order to promote and enhance the overall diversity of individuals engaged in the sport of cricket."

Not enough has been done by the national governing body to spread cricket beyond its core base of first and second generation immigrants. That ACF has embedded this as its purpose and is willing to be measured on this goal is commendable.

The entire arc of a cricketer's lifespan

Equally impressive is the fact that ACF provides a membership option for everyone regardless of age or gender. As Stephen Rooke so perfectly put it at the Orlando meeting: “Our goal is to accommodate a wide array of American cricketing interests and the entire arc of a cricketer’s lifespan as it progresses from youth cricket to adult cricket to senior cricket.” Categorization in this manner allows the Federation to adjust incentives for different levels and, through the use of data mining, ACF could also make informed decisions when promoting the sport.

The best way to get a member for life is start them young. This is a huge deal. My 8 year old has a membership card from the American Taekwondo Association. He is as proud of that as he is of his belt and something tells me he will be an ATA member for life. Sooner or later, he is going to wonder why cricket hadn't given him something he can can be proud of.

People with Disabilities

In August of 2009, DreamCricket Academy got a call from N.J. School for the Deaf to conduct a cricket camp for the kids there. What followed was simply magical. The NJSD kids enjoyed the demo and the game. It was also a great opportunity for the young cricketers from DreamCricket Academy.

While this was initiated by the NJSD, most world class sports governing bodies actively reach out to the impaired. According to the ECB's special web page for disabled cricket, "ECB's vision is to become and remain the world’s leading governing body in providing access to the sport of cricket for people with disabilities."

In the US, USA Baseball has this as part of its purpose: “To encourage and support baseball programs for individuals with disabilities and the participation of such individuals in baseball activity, including, where feasible, the expansion of opportunities for meaningful participation by individuals with disabilities in programs of baseball competition for able-bodied individuals.”

ACF does not shy away from its social responsibility and specifically mentions people with disabilities in its charter. “Cricket shall also include any variation of the sport that deviates from the rules set by the International Cricket Council in order to accommodate mental or physical disabilities as defined in the Americans with Disabilities Act.”

Officers and Directors

Another area where ACF’s constitution must be commended is the line it draws between employees and elected representatives.

Since it is topical, I should quote from Article 1 of the US constitution: "No Person holding any Office under the United States, shall be a member of either house during his Continuance in Office." The founding fathers included this restriction to create legislative-executive checks and balances.

ACF envisages a similar delineation. Section 6.4 of ACF constitution says: “The CEO and all other employees owe to the Federation the duties of good faith and loyalty. Consistent with this, no person may serve simultaneously as an officer of the Federation and as a member of the Board or the Committee.”

ACF stipulates that the CFO, the Chief of Sporting Operations and the Secretary should be supervised by the CEO and contemplates that all officers who are responsible for day-to-day operations must be compensated in order to be effective and that they must be accountable to the board.

As we all know, USACA’s constitution specifically requires direct elections for the roles of Treasurer and Secretary. When you have just 15 vote-eligible leagues and several candidates in the mix, the winner is sometimes determined by political math. Also, popularity should not be confused with capability. USACA’s recent history is proof that popularity and capability do not always go hand in hand.

Zonal structure

One area where ACF’s constitution is surprisingly low on details is the zonal structure. At the ACF Face to Face meeting in Orlando, which I attended as CLNJ’s delegate, there was talk of creating an organization that respects zonal autonomy. League representatives also felt that the present USACA regional structure was imperfect.

Regardless, since the constitution mentions six zonal directors representing three zones, it is important for prospective members to understand the zonal composition and how they will be represented at the national level and within their zone. From a more practical standpoint, ACF will want to await the outcome of its membership drive before it announces the zones or it may end up with unequal zones in terms of size of membership. But not spelling out its current thinking regarding zones makes for poor optics, something ACF should alleviate through a concept document or via the FAQs.

USA Cricket: ACF provides answers to recent issues and impasses - Part 1

openingbat — Wed, 30 Jan 2013 16:38:00 GMT

Now, you can get all the USA Cricket updates via Facebook. Also follow us on Twitter via @dreamcricket

By Venu Palaparthi

On January 20, the American Cricket Federation (ACF) published a draft constitution and invited comments from the various constituents. With this, ACF took the first step into creating a role for itself. In AGMs and among Executive Committees across the country, discussions have begun on the draft constitution.

The initial reactions from most stakeholders are somewhat existential and logical. Does USA really need another cricket organization? What are the prospects of this organization? A range of questions fall out of this, such as, what will the ICC do, what impact will it have on players, and so on.

For those who have followed USA cricket over the last decade and have seen several attempts to change the system fail, the response is a somewhat cynical shrug. Depending on the level of cynicism and political awareness, their questions range from “ACF is USACA in sheep's clothing?" to "Aren't these the same people who ran the game at USACA?” For the folks who have studied USACA's history, the questions are “How can we be sure that ACF won’t meet with the same fate as the Council of League Presidents and Major League Cricket?” And for the eternal optimists, there is also, "with New Zealand Cricket and Cricket Holdings America involved, USACA will change from within."

"Mere Paas Maa Hai"

I also spoke to a couple of stakeholders who are more closely aligned with USACA. Naturally, their reaction is based on political calculus: “I expect the ACF leagues to abandon the mother ship at the sight of the first USACA carrot.” The underlying assumption, and not entirely without basis, is that at least some of the dissident leagues are driven by short term goals. They also draw strength from the fact that a large percentage of participants of many leagues are unconcerned about anything beyond the weekend game. Long range planning and strategic thinking take a backseat as a result.

USACA's confidence also arises from the fact that the ICC and CHA continue to shower unconditional love on it. A friend and I were joking that it was like the legendary "Mere Paas Maa Hai" dialogue from the movie "Deewar." The joke goes like this:

ACF to USACA: "Mere paas cricketers ka trust hain, leagues ka support hain, turf wickets hain, achcha constitution hain, tournaments hain. Tere paas kya hain." [I have the trust of the cricket community, support of the leagues, turf wickets, a great constitution and tournament schedule. What do you have?]

USACA replies "Mere paas ICC ka mamta hai!" [I have ICC's love.]

A good start for a guiding document

In part one of this series, I will explore whether ACF's constitution provides the right starting point. In part two, I will attempt to analyze areas of the ACF constitution that are completely new territory and in part three, I will dwell on the philosophical aspect of whether ACF has a chance at all.

In order for the ACF to win the support of the cricket community, it must first be reviewed through the prism of recent impasses and issues that USA cricket has faced. Incidents from 2011 and 2012 have left deep wounds and if ACF cannot address these issues meaningfully, it won't get the traction it seeks.

The issues are well documented - the controversial handling of the last election, the heartless disqualification of two-thirds of USA’s leagues from voting, the organization’s insistence on recognizing a national board member as the vote-carrying representative of a league despite the league’s public disavowal of the said person, and the manner in which appeals and complaints were dealt with before, during and after the election.

ACF must convince cricketers that it has the answers on matters of election timelines, voting eligibility and dispute resolution. That is the first litmus test for ACF.

Election Timeline: Let’s take the issue of a timeline for elections, an area where history has repeated itself with amazing irregularity, if you will forgive the pun. USACA is no stranger to elections controversies - elections were delayed in 2002 (eventually held in 2003), in 2007 (eventually held in 2008) and in 2011 (eventually held in 2012).

ACF does not leave any room for maneuvering on the topic of elections. By stating that the terms of directors begin on January 1 of the year following an election and that elections shall be held before the first Saturday of December, the ACF constitution eliminates the election cycle vagueness that has enveloped USA elections. It also prevents any meddlesome interference in the conduct of elections - the kind witnessed in 2011.

In fact, the ACF goes one step further and enhances accountability for the conduct of elections. Section 7.10 stipulates that each director pay ACF an non-compliance penalty of $50 per day when a deadline is missed. In my estimate, USACA would be richer by a six-figure amount if it had such a provision. [If such a penalty was also imposed for missed tournaments, USACA would probably have a high seven-figure bank balance.]

Voting Eligibility: On suspensions of rights including voting privileges, the ACF constitution states that a member shall be suspended if they fail to submit membership dues as required for membership or for not meeting the terms of any agreement with the ACF.

While I agree that non-payment of dues before a record date should be the basis, there are two sides to that coin. We have also seen how holding off indefinitely on processing membership applications has impacted leagues desiring to become members. We have also seen issues like lost mail, delayed deposits or late payments leading to confusion surrounding voting eligibility.

We have also seen how the national body can lose the plot entirely when exercising its powers. As an example, my own league (CLNJ) paid $4300 for 43 clubs during 2010. But USACA's compliance consultant contended that the league should have paid for 44 clubs since it had identified 44 clubs on its website. Our explanation that the 44th club was inactive throughout the season fell on deaf ears ("In 2010 , one of the teams dropped out at the start of the season and hence dues were paid for 43 teams," our league pleaded). In 2011, we added a team and paid for 44 clubs. In any event, CLNJ was disqualified and among the reasons given was non-payment of dues. We paid $4300 for 2010 and $4400 in 2011. Another $100 was not going to break the bank, but our genuine reasoning was not accepted.

The ACF constitution attempts to solve these types of issues by making several provisions. First, the ACF constitution vests voting privileges in the hands of a broad membership, which includes players, clubs and leagues. In this manner, voting is not an exclusive privilege of leagues. And disqualifying leagues or pronouncing bogus leagues as vote-eligible does not affect electoral outcomes as it has with the national board.

Secondly, suspension of a member cannot be arbitrary. Under 3.9(b), the process of suspending a member must be conducted according to the Dispute Resolution Process.

Thirdly, the ACF constitution lays out a clear timeline for elections. The election deadline, election process and the appeals process, each have built-in notification periods and provide reasonable times for suspended members to take steps to restore their privileges.

In my view, a few additional provisions could further enhance the organization's reputation and allay fears of potential members. As an example, ACF could make reasonable attempts to notify a member approaching their membership anniversary date that the membership would be suspended unless payment is received by a certain deadline. If the fees are not received after a second reminder or after the anniversary date, suspension should be triggered. Suspension for non-payment should be lifted if payment is received (together with a penalty) within 30 days of the anniversary date. If not, membership should be cancelled.

Also, new members accepted within eight weeks of an election should not be allowed to vote. That will prevent gaming of the voting process by candidates. The ACF constitution already requires that eligibility lists be produced no later than eight weeks before an election and appeals by ineligible voters must occur no later than 6 weeks before the election. These eligibility related appeals must be heard in an expedited manner because the 45-day window under the Judicial Proceedings section may place the member at risk of being pronounced denied a vote just a tad later than needed if his appeal is upheld.

In summary, on the subject of voting eligibility, the ACF constitution gets a passing grade but should include some additional safeguards either within the constitution or through membership agreements. It should also take a more service-oriented approach by sending out reminders.

Term Limits: Term limits are not exactly a novel concept but not all organizations embrace limits with equal enthusiasm. After all, it wasn't until the 22nd amendment was ratified in 1951 that a two-term limit was placed for election to the office of the US president. Generally speaking, an organization's embrace of term limits reflects the importance the organization places on fresh ideas.

The ACF constitution stipulates a two term-limit for members of the Advisory and Judicial Committee. This is adequate.

For the Directors, it sets a 8-year cap since a length of a term may vary from one year to four years. This is a great start. In order to fully capture the spirit of term-limits, ACF should consider limiting candidates from contesting in an election if winning the election would lead to three successive terms or 8 years. In fact, ACF should consider going one step further. The maximum length of time a person should be allowed to serve in any capacity at the national level should be 8 years in any 16-year period.

USACA has no limits whatsoever - 2013 marks Gladstone Dainty's 10th year as President.

Judicial process: This area is well thought out and ACF's adoption of checks and balances through the proposed Advisory and Judicial Committee is remarkable. This committee is a good mix of representatives with no one category of members being disproportionately represented.

The judicial process is described in detail and sets timelines for submission, response, rebuttal response, and the meeting of the judicial committee. The only recommendation I can think of in this area is to set a similar timeline when additional questions or clarifications arise and when reconsideration is sought.

Duty to Recuse: ACF's draft constitution also clearly spells out the duty to recuse, something that USACA's constitution does not when it comes to the Appeal Committee. In fact, USACA's constitution empowers the Board to establish an Appeal Committee whose job is to consider appeals to final decisions by the Board. In and of itself, that presents a conflict. Without the expectation of recusal, it is up to the board to ensure that the committee that they appoint is impartial.

Proof is in the pudding, because when the board's decision to disqualify several leagues was appealed, USACA's Appeal Committee consisted of several league presidents, some of whom had a direct interest in the eventual outcome of the appeals in question.

Membership: Article 3 titled "Membership" in the ACF constitution is by far the most elegant and simple. Section 3.2 clearly defines the eligibility requirements for the various classes of members. Section 3.5 lays out when membership takes effect: "Any person, natural or juridical, satisfying the eligibility requirements of any of the classes of membership defined in this article shall be immediately considered a member of the Federation."

In comparison, the USACA constitution has sowed distrust as the membership process is viewed as a tool for the board to pick and choose its members. Section 12 of Article III of the USACA constitution says that Membership "Applications shall be approved by a majority vote of the Board." Elsewhere, the constitution says that a member is not entitled to vote "until the Board is satisfied that the member has met the definition of good standing." These two sections give the incumbent USACA board members control over when membership is granted and when a member may vote.

You will also notice that there is nothing in the USACA constitution that requires the board to review an application for membership within a finite amount of time. Over the last several years, I received numerous emails from league administrators awaiting the fate of their membership applications. Even this website's affiliate, the DreamCricket Academy's bid to renew its existing associate membership hit a roadblock in July 2012 and the matter is still with the board with no timeline for resolution.

Broad Participation: As previously noted, this is another area where ACF sets the right tone. With several classes of voting members, membership and participation are not the privilege of a handful of large leagues. The ACF constitution provides a voice and a vote to every individual, club, league or organization. It is also refreshing to see that ACF is keen on extending a warm welcome to softball and indoor leagues. US Soccer has similar categorization and this is exactly what you would expect from a world class sports organization.

To its credit, ACF gives itself room for expanding the number of categories. I can already think of a few, such as umpires, coaches and statisticians. The constitution committee should consider including them in the final constitution.

The ACF constitution should clearly define privileges that are granted to members who straddle multiple categories. As an example, a 17-year old college level women's player should not be forced to choose between the rights of a Women's Player and Development Player. Instead, she must have the rights associated with both categories. This is largely a feature that can be explored through the membership form.

Ultimately, in order to build goodwill, ACF will need to design and provide services applicable to each category. ACF has said that it expects to release FAQs and a bill of rights. The sooner it releases these documents, the better its chances of signing up members.

Delegates/Agents: This is another area where cricket has not been served too well in recent times. In one instance, a league publicly disavowed an individual who continued to be recognized by the national board as that league's representative. The league's wishes were completely ignored. Instead, the league was notified that the USACA president would take the "matter to the [national] board for resolution."

In other words, the USACA board was going to rule on who would represent a league. This is akin to the US Congress determining who should serve as the representative of a New Jersey district. To make matters more interesting, the league representative who was questioned now sits on the USACA board.

The ACF constitution avoids such conflicts by placing the responsibility squarely in the league's hands - "In the case of League and Club Members, the individual registered as the member's agent shall vote on the member's behalf."

USA Cricket in 2012 - A year in review

openingbat — Mon, 31 Dec 2012 22:38:00 GMT

Now, you can get all the USA Cricket updates via Facebook. Also follow us on Twitter via @dreamcricket

By Venu Palaparthi

For cricketers across America, 2012 was a year that held a lot of promise but it was also a year in which the occasional bright spots were eclipsed by an unresponsive cricket administration.

USACA began the year with a successful player camp in Fort Lauderdale. Players praised the camp calling it the best run USACA camp since the one held in December 2009 ahead of the 2010 ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier. “Unfortunately lack of planning, lack of management skills has probably cost us a lot. We have started now on a positive note,” Ahmed Jeddy, chair of the USACA cricket committee said.

With that, the bouquets for USACA’s administrators ended. As the winter turned to spring, USACA made some perplexing moves that will undoubtedly haunt the organization for some time to come.

“This year, voting is more than just the core responsibility of citizenship; it is an act of defiance against malicious political forces determined to reduce access to democracy,” noted The New York Times in an editorial column titled ‘The Struggle to Cast a Vote’ ahead of the USA presidential election. “Public outcry, with support from the courts, may eventually remove these threats to democracy.”

Alas, the cricket community could not accomplish what a nation of 311 million could. Neither the public outcry nor the courts succeeded in protecting the democratic process from a compliance process that began for all the right reasons but ended up being used as a tool for disenfranchisement.

The much awaited USACA election in April comprising only 15 leagues was about as inclusive as you might expect in a tin-pot regime masquerading as a democracy.

As expected, the election delivered power into the hands of Gladstone Dainty and his friends. If anyone thought that USACA would now focus on the job of rebuilding, having freed itself of the distractions of a pesky opposition, they were proved wrong. USACA proceeded to underwhelm on nearly every front.

On the membership front, expressing disappointment that only around one third of USACA’s membership was in good standing, USACA issued a media release in which it promised to help leagues become compliant. USACA ended the year with an even smaller membership and now has just four functioning regions and 12 leagues in good standing. By DreamCricket.com's estimate, over 705 hard-ball cricket clubs or teams in the US operate outside of the USACA framework.

On the administrative front, a quick look at USACA’s 100-Day Plan which was announced in May offers every MBA student a lesson on why it is important NOT to set expectations that one cannot realistically meet. Not satisfied with falling behind on its initial 100-day plan goals, USACA set itself additional goals on October 5, 2012, when it promised "coaching sessions and high performance clinics will be conducted by Robin Singh within 45 days" of the press release. In the same release, USACA announced that "preparation [for ICC Division 3 tournament and ICC World Cup Qualifiers] will be complete within 45 days from the date of this press release." Like many previous USACA promises, these too were quickly forgotten.

On the tournament front, by February, it was clear that USA was not in a position to host the ICC WCL Division Four tournament.

Pic (Right) - Screengrab from USACA website. All national fixtures scheduled for 2012 were cancelled.

At the national level, USACA’s U-17 tournament was first postponed, then cancelled. All other national tournaments - USACA Women's National Tournament, the U-15 National Tournament, and the U-19 National Tournament - met with the same fate. The men’s national mutated into an East-West ‘shuffle’ comprising one 50-over match and a trial T20.

The few tournament opportunities for the players were courtesy of the ICC. There were also a few successful independent tournaments organized by the New York Public Schools Athletic League, American Cricket Federation, American College Cricket and Cricket Council USA, but hardly any from USACA.

Financially, the promised CHA millions are yet to arrive and recent news reports point to a potential divide between CHA and USACA. Even more distressing, USACA exited the year with more lawsuits than ever before.

On the field, inadequate tournament preparations notwithstanding, Team USA did the country proud. At the ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier, USA finished 12th with three wins in nine games. However, the wins were notable because they came against Bermuda, Oman and Scotland, teams that are currently ranked higher than USA on the World Cricket League ladder.

The following month, the USA Women were unlucky to be edged out of the ICC Women’s World Twenty20 Qualifier on net run rate as rain washed out their final against Canada in the ICC Americas Division One tournament held in the Cayman Islands.

In July, USA took part in the ICC Americas U-18 Match Play Camp with each team - Bermuda, Canada and USA - playing four matches. Canada finished at the top of the table after accumulating the most points based on the bonus point structure of the event. USA did well to win their last two matches as the boys began to understand each other’s strengths and gel as a team.

September took USA to the ICC WCL Division Four event in Malaysia where USA conducted a successful campaign and regained their place in Division Three, thus keeping USA’s hopes alive for 2015 World Cup qualification.

Pic (above) - USA celebrates on a damp Bayuemas Oval after gaining promotion to next year's ICC WCL Division Three in Bermuda. [Courtesy: Peter Della Penna/DreamCricket.com]

While the players did reasonably well, it was clear that with better preparation and planning, they could have done even better. In fact, at the end of the ICC Americas U-18 Match Play Camp, USA U-18 coach Mumtaz Yusuf said, “There’s a lot of work to be done. We need to have the team together for a longer period of time if you want to really succeed.” Golden words, but quickly forgotten by USACA. Nothing was done for the remainder of 2012 for USACA's junior development teams and no plans have been announced as we enter 2013.

In the good news category, though the much talked about USA T20 league was pushed back to 2013, the two T20 matches featuring West Indies and New Zealand helped to improve Lauderhill’s reputation as an international cricket venue.

Cricket continues to thrive at the grassroots without the input from the national board. The number of hard ball and soft ball cricket leagues in USA is estimated to have crossed 100. The US Youth Cricket Association has successfully scaled its operations and continues to introduce cricket to schools at a faster rate than ever before. More academies and indoor practice facilities have opened in 2012 than in any single year in history. At the college level, American College Cricket now has affiliated clubs in over 50 colleges and its championships are televised on TV Asia. Several leading brands associated with the sport, including ESPN, MoneyGram, and MetLife, have made initial forays into USA.

Cricket in the USA now finds itself at a fork in the road. Years of intrigue and divisive politics have made the nation’s cricketers insular. Many are unconvinced about the benefits of associating with each other and it remains to be seen if recent efforts by ACF to galvanize the leagues will prove successful.

Meanwhile, USACA’s recent track record has not exactly enhanced its prestige. In fact, USACA’s influence over cricket has faded to the point of irrelevance. USACA’s future relies heavily on the lifeline of ICC recognition and good news emanating from CHA.

Fittingly, the best news and the most positive quote for USACA came on the last day of 2012. “I look forward to leading USACA’s national efforts, as well as working closely with the member leagues, clubs [underlined for emphasis] and partners to ensure cricket’s vast potential in the US is realized,” the newly appointed CEO Darren Beazley is quoted as saying.

USA's cricket community hopes that Mr. Beazley will work closely with all leagues. If he has followed USA cricket lately, he should know that there are hardly any member leagues left.

Here's wishing everyone a better 2013.

USACA's support base erodes further

openingbat — Fri, 21 Dec 2012 22:44:00 GMT

Now, you can get all the USA Cricket updates via Facebook. Also follow us on Twitter via @dreamcricket

By Venu Palaparthi

In an affidavit in opposition to the order to show cause in the petition filed by Kenwyn Williams asking that USACA be dissolved, Gladstone Dainty claimed that the board's decision to suspend Kenwyn Williams was approved by nine leagues in good standing, constituting two-thirds majority of the twelve USACA leagues eligible to vote.

For the first time since the controversial election, USACA acknowledged that its membership was down to twelve good-standing leagues, down from the fifteen leagues that voted in April 2012. But that is not the whole story.

Attached to the affidavit were nine ballots from leagues indicating approval of the board's November 1 decision. At least two league presidents have since disputed the authority of the signatories.

Michael Dupigny signed the ballot on behalf of Washington Metro Cricket Board (WMCB) claiming to be the Acting Chairman of the Board of Directors for that league. When reached for comment regarding his league's support of the USACA board decision, WMCB President, Avinash Varma, denied knowledge of the ballot. Responding via email, Varma wrote that "Mike Dupigny does not hold any office with the WMCB league since March 24, 2012." Varma noted that WMCB's BOD was dissolved by the membership at a special session held in March.

New Jersey Cricket Association's newly elected president, Govind Itwaru told DreamCricket.com that he had not seen the ballot and could not comment on its contents. However, Itwaru said that Sheldon Mollineau, who had signed on behalf of the league, had resigned as the president of NJCA on November 16, 2012 and could not claim to represent the league following his resignation. The undated ballot had an electronic signature of Sheldon Mollineau whose title appears as President of NJCA.

Interestingly, even though the ballots had to be faxed or emailed no later than 9PM ET on December 9, 2012, at least three of the ballots had a facsimile date following that date.

If USACA had twelve leagues in good standing, then eight leagues would have constituted a two-thirds majority. It is apparent that USACA had trouble meeting that basic requirement by December 9th.

USA Cricket: USACA meet bereft of workable ideas

openingbat — Fri, 21 Dec 2012 22:42:00 GMT

Now, you can get all the USA Cricket updates via Facebook. Also follow us on Twitter via @dreamcricket

By Venu Palaparthi

The USACA Annual General Meeting was generally bereft of ideas, a participant who was at the meeting told DreamCricket.com on condition of anonymity. There were roughly 16 attendees at the AGM including a handful of league presidents, he added. Interim CEO Nabeel Ahmed, 1st Vice President Michael Gale and South East Regional Representative Owen Grey were absent at the AGM. USACA Treasurer John Thickett attended by phone.

The number of attendees and the tone of the meeting were both a far cry from the 2010 edition, which saw greater participation amidst an optimistic outlook for USA cricket.

As has become the norm at recent USACA meetings, hotel security was instructed to block the entry of certain people. Leighton Greenidge, President of the Southern Connecticut Cricket Association and until recently the chairman of the erstwhile USACA North East Region, was denied access.

Just for comparison, my league's AGM is attended by over 100 eager participants. Other US-based national level cricket organizations including United States Youth Cricket Association and American Cricket Federation (ACF) have held meetings during 2012 that were generally more inclusive, featured a constructive agenda and encouraged divergent views. In stark contrast to the USACA AGM, the ACF meeting was open to the public and participants were asked to join in-person, via WebEx or through a conference bridge.

The most important topic on everyone's mind at the AGM was the status of the T20 league. According to the DreamCricket.com source, USACA President Gladstone Dainty was hopeful that the league would be launched and left the participants with the impression that more details would be shared in a month or so. If you thought that cleared the air on this very important topic, please hold your breath. ESPNcricinfo reported yesterday that stakeholders were informed by Dainty that the board's partnership with the primary investor was nearing an end, a claim that the investor aparently denied.

Updates were provided at the AGM by the President, the Treasurer and from three of the four functioning regions. To the utter dismay of those in attendance, Dainty handed out a document dated September 9, 2008, titled "A Vision for USACA" and told those assembled that the document remained as valid in 2012 as it did in 2008. Before you jump to conclusions that this reflects the President's far-sighted vision, you must spare a thought to the other possibility - USACA's inability to deliver.

In 2008, Dainty wrote of the need for USACA to adhere to a few tenets (1) a short term business plan (2) a long term business plan (2) player development and (4) marketing and promotions. Under Dainty's leadership, these 'tenets' remain largely unfulfilled. If you are in the mood to cut some slack, let us move the dial back some more. Cricinfo's Deb Das presciently wrote in 2004, "It is not clear that the USACA even knows how to proceed on a national basis with such goals. There are no professional marketers or sports managers at the board or executive level in the USACA, and no indication that there will be any in the near future."

At the very minimum, Dainty should have revised the 2008 document and set new expectations. The 2008 document still talks about a team participating in ICC sponsored ODI matches by 2013. And how about the goal that talks of a national championship with marketing, TV and other media coverage? What has USACA delivered on this vision? Why is it that American College Cricket was able to achieve some of the same objectives in a much shorter period but not USACA?

The Atlantic Region's report should give everyone an indication of what the regions were able to accomplish during 2012, a year in which no national tournaments were held. The slide deck makes it clear that the region has chosen to duplicate efforts instead of strengthening existing programs. As an example, the region describes an initiative to introduce cricket to Maryland's public schools beginning with Prince George's County. Well, that's a novel idea... except that the US Youth Cricket Association (USYCA) has already made considerable headway with schools in Prince George's County and, for good measure, the following other Maryland counties as well - Baltimore, Wicomico, Howard, Carroll, Queen Anne’s and Kent.

The Atlantic Region's proposal was devoid of concrete timelines. The words "TBD," "Funding Needed," or "submitted proposal" appear on most slides. Thankfully for USYCA, its efforts have been recognized by folks outside of the regional administration. As far back as 2010, USYCA's Prince George's County program was featured in an article in the Bowie Patch (read here - Part 1, 2). USACA would be glad to know that USYCA received $63,000 in donations in its very first year including $22,000 from Appleseed Foundation.

The Treasurer's Report by Thickett confirmed what we have read in the news recently. USACA had a 2011 net deficit of $1.9 million and a receivable of $1.5 million.

The 100-day Plan itself did not come up for discussion, according to the DreamCricket.com source. However, some of the themes were touched upon.

On the topic of the CEO, the participants were told that USACA had shortlisted four candidates and that a CEO would be announced once the interview process was completed. In a press release titled 'Status Report - USACA 100 Day Plan' dated October 5, 2012, USACA noted that they had shortlisted five candidates and expected to select a final candidate by October 19, 2012. In summary, there has been little progress. Likewise, no plans were put forth by compliance and governance committees.

At the 2009 AGM, the USA Cricket Umpires Association (USACUA) was tasked with creating a representative and inclusive umpires federation that was in step with aspirations of umpires across the country. USACUA provided an update at Saturday's AGM outlining progress and Dainty acknowledged that the organization needed to be supported. This perhaps was one of the few bright spots during the AGM.

USACA's control over USA cricket erodes further

openingbat — Tue, 02 Oct 2012 18:27:00 GMT

Now, you can get all the USA Cricket updates via Facebook. Also follow us on Twitter via @dreamcricket

By Venu Palaparthi

All talk and no action

After winning a controversy marred election that saw the present leadership emerge with the support a majority of only fifteen leagues that were allowed to vote, USACA has not exactly been sweeping U.S. cricket popularity polls.

'USACA’s goal is to expand dramatically the audience for cricket in the United States and to make cricket attractive to players and spectators from all parts of American society,' USACA said in its press release the day after the election.

USACA subsequently published its 100-day plan and hinted at efforts to reach out to the leagues via virtual townhall meetings. The plan also noted that its Compliance Management Committee would 'reach out and help all leagues comply' within 60 to 120 days.

Following that, in his first letter to USA cricketers upon being named to the post, USACA's Interim CEO, Nabeel Ahmed, said, "One of my major responsibilities as the CEO is to unify various factions in different regions of the country."

Over 120 days have passed since the publication of the 100-day plan. In true USACA style, it's bridge-building has been all talk and no action. And USACA's trust deficit remains.

USACA's 3-D formula - Deny, Decline, Disengage

With the necessary evil of elections out of the way, USACA appears to have gone back to its "3-D" formula of deny, decline and disengage. National tournaments have not been held in over a year and the USACA website has gone cold.

ICC, the game's international governing body, continues to behave as if all is well at USACA. Ironically, in his report on governance, Lord Woolf wrote that the ICC "has a heavy responsibility to adopt the highest standards."

Also, three leagues that were prevented from voting in the election but whose leaders have had long-standing ties with the present leadership have decided to let bygones be bygones and have rejoined the bandwagon.

Before you start to imagine a glow of congeniality surrounding USACA, it's worth pointing out that four fully compliant leagues have become ambivalent towards USACA. In fact, three of these leagues - Washington Metropolitan Cricket Board, North West Cricket League and Minnesota Cricket Association - have formally expressed support for the American Cricket Federation (ACF), the new organization that has set for itself the lofty goal of "upholding and promoting cricket’s values of transparency, inclusiveness and fairness."

A country divided

By this website's estimates, fewer than 345 clubs or teams are now part of the extended USACA family. The Lone Star State, Texas, has become a USACA bastion - all three Texas leagues remain affiliated with USACA and two of the directors on the national board are from Texas. Florida comes a close second with USACA enjoying the support of leagues that represent 82% of Florida's clubs or teams.

Picture above: In large swathes of the country, USACA has little or no support. Place a cursor on the map to find out estimated % of hard-ball teams or clubs that are affiliated with USACA. [Source: DreamCricket.com]

Outside of Florida and Texas there is hardly any state where USACA can claim authority over cricket. In four of the eight regions - North East, South West, North West, and Central East - USACA does not enjoy the support of at least three leagues needed to constitute a valid region. Similarly, USACA's influence is vastly diminished in Atlantic Region and in New York Regions.

For a majority of USA's leagues and clubs that play hard-ball cricket, USACA has remained as mysterious as Bigfoot - evidence is hard to come by of the organization's existence. By DreamCricket.com's estimate, over 705 hard-ball cricket clubs or teams in the U.S. operate outside of the USACA framework.

By all accounts, ACF is gathering momentum. Just last week, the ACF announced that it had received a formal expression of support from a 12th hard-ball cricket league. According to DreamCricket.com's calculations, the 12 leagues that have expressed support to ACF represent 385 clubs or teams. ACF appears to be gaining strength in New York, New Jersey, New England, Southern California, North West and the midwest.

The unaffiliated

By DreamCricket.com's estimates there are 321 clubs or teams that are not affiliated to either USACA or ACF. These are teams or clubs that have neither paid USACA dues nor have expressed support to ACF. Of these, 209 teams or clubs belong to ten leagues that were part of USACA until their recent disqualification.

A majority of these former USACA leagues have no interest in rejoining USACA. Four of these leagues have informally expressed openness to joining ACF but are awaiting approval of their member clubs to formally express support to ACF.

The remaining 112 clubs have never been integrated with the cricketing fabric - these include clubs and leagues that are thriving in places like Omaha (NE), Pittsburgh (PA), Iowa and Hawaii.

Meanwhile, the ACF is working hard to create an organization that is more representative and inclusive than USACA. ACF's steering committee has held weekly conference calls and the various sub-committees have held meetings of their own. ACF's most recent press release noted that its Constitution Committee had completed a draft of the Constitution of the organization, and that ACF was proceeding with incorporation in Maryland.

ACF is also set to present its first national tournament over the Columbus Day weekend in Los Angeles. The inaugural T20 tournament, hosted by SCCA, will see the participation of a majority of the leagues that have expressed solidarity with ACF.

So there you have it. Some 303 years after USA's first recorded cricket match at the James River plantation, and 47 years after the formation of the national board, this is a country where the national governing body is not recognized in 34 states and does not represent well over 66% of the nation's existing cricketers.

Teams from across USA to participate in ACF's Inaugural T20 tournament

openingbat — Thu, 20 Sep 2012 18:58:00 GMT

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[Source: ACF Media Release]

The Inaugural T20 Tournament presented by the American Cricket Federation and hosted by Southern California Cricket Association (SCCA) at Woodley Park in Los Angeles has attracted a host of teams from across USA.

Let the clash begin!This first ever national level inter-league T20 tournament presented by ACF is expected to provide a springboard for upcoming talent. The tournament will be played over the Columbus Day weekend (October 6-8).

Teams representing Minnesota Cricket Association, Michigan Cricket Association, Cricket League of New Jersey, Washington Metropolitan Cricket Board, Southern Connecticut Cricket Association, Midwest Cricket Conference and Massachusetts State Cricket League are participating in addition to the hosts (SCCA) and a team from northern California.

The participating teams welcomed an opportunity to play on turf wickets in Los Angeles and test their strength against their peers from across the country. There have not been any men's tournaments at the national level in any format in some fifteen months and there certainly have not been any men's national tournaments on turf wickets in the US in the last two years.

"We are very excited to be going to LA to showcase our talent and compete against some of the best cricketing talent in the country. Being able to do so on turf and in the best cricketing facility in the USA, that's icing on the cake," Rajiv Shah, Manager of the team representing the Midwest Cricket Conference said about the tournament.

All the participating teams have been encouraged to include U19 cricketers in their squads and ACF announced that an award will be presented to the best U19 cricketer at the tournament.

Speaking on the occasion, Kamal Azeez, the tournament organizer said: “We are fortunate enough in LA that we can play cricket well into November. We are excited to be hosting this tournament on the turf wickets at Woodley. For cricketers who have never played here, this will be an experience to remember.”

“Preparations are being made to enable live internet coverage,” Azeez added.

Media and blogger inquiries should be emailed to americancricketfederation@gmail.com. Sponsorship inquiries should be directed to gsingh@mail.sdsu.edu.

Philadelphia Cricket Festival and CC Morris Cricket Library express support for ACF

openingbat — Tue, 28 Aug 2012 20:28:00 GMT

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[Source: ACF Media Release]

Philadelphia Cricket Festival and CC Morris Cricket Library express support for ACF's guiding principles

ACF announced on Monday that it had received an expression of support from the CC Morris Cricket Library and Museum and the Philadelphia International Cricket Festival.

Pic (Right): CC Morris Cricket Library, Haverford College, PA.

The Philadelphia International Cricket Festival is an annual sporting charity event to benefit youth cricket staged during the first weekend in May to promote cricket and to encourage national and international sporting ties.

The CC Morris Cricket Library and Museum, located at Haverford College in Philadelphia, is the largest collection of cricket literature and memorabilia in the Western Hemisphere. The library includes over a thousand volumes and a very large collection of printed and photographic materials and related artifacts of US Cricket history.

C.C. Morris recently contributed substantially to a joint, global exhibition, "Swinging Away", which explored the links between cricket and baseball. In conjunction with the Bradman Center in Sydney, Australia, Lords of London and the US Baseball Hall of Fame, the exhibition toured all three locations to critical acclaim.

Michael Thomas joins ACF's Interim Advisory Board

The media release also noted that Michael Thomas had joined ACF's interim advisory board. Michael is a co-founder of Philadelphia Cricket Festival and a Director of the C.C. Morris Cricket Library and Museum at Haverford College.

Pic (Right): Philadelphia International Cricket Festival

Michael brings with him years of cricketing experience as former captain and president of the British Officers C.C. in Philadelphia.

Michael's successful corporate career included roles as the European Treasurer of a large pharmaceutical company and variously as VP Business Development and CFO in several public companies.

ACF meets in Orlando, FL. Sets path forward

openingbat — Wed, 15 Aug 2012 20:15:00 GMT

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[Source: ACF Media Release]

The American Cricket Federation held its first Face to Face meeting in Orlando, Florida on August 11, 2012. The entire steering committee, representatives of various leagues from across the country, thought leaders, and heads of the various sub-committees attended the meeting in-person as well as via WebEx.

The meeting began with a formal welcome by Khalid Motiwala, CEO of the Orlando based host league – the Florida Cricket Conference (FCC). The league left no stone unturned with the preparations for the meeting. FCC booked rooms, arranged volunteers for airport pick-ups and drop-offs, and organized conference facilities at the Double Tree Hilton in Orlando.

Pic (Right): ACF Constitution sub-committee in session

Official proceedings began with a welcome by Leighton Greenidge, the Convenor of the Steering Committee, who spoke of the organization’s mission and the momentum achieved by ACF in the short time since its inception. He noted that over ten leagues had already sent in expressions of support and another dozen or so leagues and organizations were looking to do so in the weeks ahead. The Washington Metropolitan Cricket Board led by the trail-blazing Avinash Varma, was one of the first leagues to support the ACF initiative.

The tone for the day-long meeting was set by Atul Rai, advisory board member and cricket administrator. Speaking about the meeting’s theme – American Cricket – A Way Forward, Rai reminded the attendees to maintain a laser-like focus on ACF’s mission and values, which he termed as progressive and pro-cricket. Rai said that ‘a lot of pieces needed to fit together.’ However, he said that he was confident that every member would demonstrate a definitive commitment to strengthen and invigorate the process.

John Aaron, advisory board member, thanked FCC and its sponsors – AVIS, Third Eye Vision, Sky Telecom, First Choice Transportation Group, and FCC member clubs for hosting the meeting, which he called one of historic significance and a turning point for cricket in the U.S. – a rebirth that was so badly needed.

“The biggest challenge,” Aaron said, “comes from within, as there may be some non-believers or others who seek to minimize our efforts aimed at self-reliance and success.” However, he urged the ACF to stay true to its goal of eliminating the distance between cricketer and administrator, based on trust, transparency and integrity.

Pic (Right): Attendees of ACF Face to Face meeting in Orlando, FL

The first session in the morning was led by Prof. Gangaram Singh and Stephen Rooke who provided an overview of ACF’s proposed constitution. The constitution would provide the bedrock on which ACF’s pillars of effective governance and democratic structures would be built. Stephen Rooke said that the organization would have built-in checks and balances and the representative structure would be on the lines of a congress and a senate - consistent with modern democratic governance. In addition, the executive would comprise direct representatives of adult leagues, and direct representatives of clubs and players. There would also be a seat at the table for representatives of women’s cricket, youth cricket and non-traditional cricket.

Stephen Rooke answered questions about governance and went on to describe the mechanical and participatory aspects related to the ratification of the constitution.

A session on membership followed the discussion on the constitution. Shahid Ahmed of Michigan Cricket Association spoke of the membership categories. He laid out the philosophy in very simple words – ACF existed for its members and every member must have tangible benefits from associating with ACF.

In the afternoon session, the media and communications sub-committee plan was presented followed by a presentation by Leighton Greenidge regarding the tournament plan.

Pic (Right): ACF Facilities sub-committee in session

The 2012 tournament would be on inter-league lines since the regional structure would take a bit longer to evolve as the membership process played itself out, Greenidge said. The 2012 tournament is expected to be announced shortly.

The second afternoon session focused on youth cricket. Speaking about responsibilities of clubs and leagues as custodians of cricket, Manas Sahu, Massachusetts State Cricket League’s president and convenor of the youth committee, said that ACF would develop a template that each league could adopt and provide resources to implement the plan. Manas also proposed a reward mechanism for leagues that implemented a plan for youth cricket.

Jamie Harrison, who made a special guest pitch on behalf of USYCA, made a strong case for why ACF’s supporters should help promote cricket to schools. He said that USYCA had a number of resources available such as free cricket kits, brochures and training material that ACF members could utilize if they wished to advance cricket in schools across USA.

A presentation on women’s cricket followed in which Durga Das noted about the need for grassroots efforts starting with schools and colleges. Following that, Kamal Azeez spoke about how the ACF community should join hands and create a knowledge-base on constructing and maintaining cricket facilities including loose gravel, concrete, or rolled sub-strata as well as turf, synthetic, matting and coir surfaces.

Avi Gaje, who was nominated to the steering committee, spoke of the growing popularity of hard tennis ball cricket leagues across USA. Gaje was tasked with developing a road map for non-traditional cricket.

In the last session for the day, Jagan Jagannathan, Interim Secretary of the ACF summarized the day’s take-aways and presented a timeline for creating a fully functional entity with active membership by October. Jagannathan also presented a straw man with deliverables for 2013, the first full year of ACF’s existence.

ACF receives an outpouring of support from cricket leagues across US

openingbat — Tue, 14 Aug 2012 00:13:00 GMT

Now, you can get all the USA Cricket updates via Facebook. Also follow us on Twitter via @dreamcricket

[Source: ACF Media Release]

American Cricket Federation (ACF) received an outpouring of support from leagues and organizations from across the country ahead of its first Face to Face meeting in Orlando on August 11, 2012.

Ten leagues wrote to the ACF Steering Committee expressing their support to the ACF and its guiding principles. More leagues are expected to announce their support in the days following the meeting.

In their letter, the leagues noted that they were committed to ACF's stated goal of upholding cricket’s values of transparency, inclusiveness and fairness. The leagues expressed their willingness to work with the ACF in building an organization that is accountable to all cricket stakeholders and capable of growing the sport by attracting more players, clubs, leagues, fans and investors.

Once the ACF constitution is ratified and a membership structure is in place, these leagues are expected to join as founding members.

The signatory leagues include Eastern American Cricket Association, Cricket League of New Jersey, Washington Metropolitan Cricket Board, Commonwealth Cricket League of New York, Florida Cricket Conference, Michigan Cricket Association, Minnesota Cricket Association, Midwest Cricket Conference, American Cricket Conference and NorthWest Cricket League.

Together, these leagues comprise over 250 clubs and are estimated to be among the largest leagues in their respective regions.

SDSU MBA student to undertake analysis of cricket in U.S.

openingbat — Fri, 15 Jun 2012 10:41:00 GMT

MBA student to undertake analysis of cricket in USA

By Venu Palaparthi

Professor Gangaram Singh of San Diego State University announced on Tuesday that one of his MBA students, Christian Jensen, had begun working on an applied research paper in cricket. The paper will focus on developing a framework for cricket in USA so that cricket can replicate the successes of other sports leagues.

Christian Jensen, who is pursuing his MBA in Sports Management, has developed an affinity for the T20 format although he has never played the game. Jensen believes that his outsider’s approach is just what cricket needs in America. "Insiders don’t always recognize factors that an outsider can observe. I hope that my analysis will follow a systematic approach, with an objective outcome," Jensen wrote.

Leading by Example - Lacrosse and Rugby

Jensen is right on the money about the three fast growing sports and the lessons to be learned from them. Even though we should want cricket to emulate soccer, soccer is pretty much a mainstream sport in the U.S. today and already enjoys higher per game attendance than ice hockey or basketball.

Lacrosse and rugby are now at the leading edge of emerging sports and offer very realistic benchmarks for cricket. Lacrosse (+41.8%) and rugby (+37.7%) showed highest participant gains over the last four years according to SGMA's 2012 survey of team sports.

In fact, US Lacrosse, lacrosse's governing body formed in 1998, presides over a sport that has the greatest momentum of any sport in the US today with junior lacrosse participants increasing at a rate of 117.6% between 2000 and 2008. US Lacrosse now has registered membership that is over 300,000 and core participants totaling 565,000 last year. Rugby is estimated to have over 98,000 registered participants and over 67,000 high school students play rugby for their schools or clubs. Another 32,000 play college rugby.

The dominant professional leagues for lacrosse and rugby - Major League Lacrosse (MLL) and USA Rugby League (USARL) - are independent leagues and are not sanctioned by their respective national governing bodies. In fact, this is true of most American sports including basketball, baseball and football.

Academia to the Cricket Field

Jensen's and Prof. Gangaram Singh's efforts to analyze cricket in USA is expected to fill a huge void in a sport that generally is lacking in data and metrics.

The last meaningful study of cricket in America was conducted in 2009, when three different groups of MBA students at Columbia University set out under the supervision of Professor Rajiv Kohli to analyze demand for international cricket in United States. The students shared their results with USACA's CEO, Don Lockerbie, who was then working on Destination USA. Prof. Kohli is also the author of a Columbia University case study titled "The launch of the Indian Premier League." Prof. Kohli sits on the advisory board of DreamCricket.com.

Interestingly, Prof. SP Kothari of MIT-Sloan, who like Prof. Kohli is a board member of DreamCricket.com, wrote an opinion piece in October 2007 titled "Let a private cricket league boom" in The Economic Times arguing for a city-based private league months before the IPL was announced. His article was so compelling that when the original IPL Franchise Prospectus was released, his quote accompanied the introduction.

Another keen cricket fan from academia is Prof. Vijay Govindarajan, Earl C. Daum professor of international business and the founding director of Tuck’s Center for Global Leadership.

"We have to ask more fundamental questions about how the world of cricket is changing and how we need to get the right people and the right processes to compete in the future," Prof. Govindarajan once told a newspaper. "Let us selectively forget the stalwarts whose great years are behind them and focus on building a pipeline of young talent," he added noting the dearth of the three most important ingredients of world class organizations - talent, team spirit, and execution discipline.

For the record, he was talking about the Indian debacle in 2007. Prof. Govindarajan might as well be talking about USA cricket.