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USA Cricket: USA's largest cricket facility reopens at Van Cortlandt Park

openingbat — Wed, 15 May 2013 15:49:00 GMT

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The 1,146 acre Van Cortlandt Park is New York City’s fourth largest park. The Parade Ground area of the park, which had been undergoing reconstruction work, reopened on May 5th with the addition of better drainage, irrigation and clay pitches. The park now features ten clearly demarcated regulation sized cricket grounds (see map below) and is, by a distance, the largest cricket facility in North America.

The Reopening of Van Cortlandt

The reopening, which was hosted by the Van Cortlandt Park Conservancy and attended by about 100 cricketers, featured speeches by Nick Astbury, Deputy Consul General of Great Britain and Herman Lamont, Consul General of Jamaica. Nina Habib Spencer, secretary of the conservancy’s board of directors, spoke at the event.

The New York Times and Wall Street Journal covered the reopening. In an article titled "Sport of Many Nation Finds a Home in the Bronx," the Times noted: 'With the new complex, the Bronx has a total of 18 dedicated cricket fields, more than any other borough, according to city officials. (Brooklyn is next with 16 fields, followed by Queens, with 13.)'

One thing is for certain, the grounds will not have an idle weekend day. Bronx's New York Cricket League, New York's Public Schools Athletic League, Commonwealth Cricket League, and West Indian Softball Association, all have plans to use the ground.

Milford Lewis of New York Cricket League was a relieved man. His seven-team league had been dormant for three years awaiting the reopening of the park. “It’s bigger, wider, greener and more luscious,” Lewis told the Times. “It’s a far cry from where it was before. I feel on top of the world.”

“No other borough has promoted the game to the extent that the Bronx has,” Commonwealth Cricket League President Lesly Lowe told the paper.

Van Cortlandt History

Jacobus Van Cortlandt purchased part of the property in 1699 from a Dutch immigrant who swore allegiance to the British - Frederick Philipse.

Frederick Philipse was New York's wealthiest man, having started his career selling iron nails and eventually becoming the owner of vast tracts of land, some 52,000 acres in all, along the Hudson river.

The acquisition of this land by Jacobus Van Cortlandt was followed by his marriage to Frederick's daughter Eva Philipse, Subsequently, Van Cortlandt made further acquisitions of land, adding to his holdings in Bronx.

The Van Cortlandt family is very much a part of American history. Jacobus himself was twice elected the Mayor of New York. Jacobus' grandson John Jay was a governor of New York, a founding father and USA's first Chief Justice. His wife's sister Mary Philipse was George Washington's first love.

The Van Cortlandt family farmed the land until the 1870s. The land was sold to New York city as urban sprawl on the city's northern fringes threatened to engulf. The City finally acquired the title to the property on December 12, 1888.

Cricket at Van Cortlandt

Cricket has been played in the park since 1913, according to some sources. According to park historians, the Parade Ground area may have been used for various sports including cricket before World War I but the National Guard had priority and conducted mock warfare and played polo on the ground.

In 1917, the Army took over the ground. Following the war, in 1938, public regained access and provisions were once again made for baseball, cricket and soccer. Cricket has been played uninterrupted since 1938 until the fields were closed in 2010 for the $13 milllion reconstruction of the Parade Ground.

[Map courtesy of NYC Parks]

Everest ACS are Eastern American Cricket Association Power 40 Division A champions

openingbat — Wed, 05 Sep 2012 14:26:00 GMT

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By Sam Sooppersaud

The Everest ACS cricket organization added yet another piece of hardware to their trophy cabinet when they crushed the Atlantis Cricket Organization in the 2012 Eastern American Cricket Association Power 40 Division "A" Final on Sunday, September 2. The match was played at the Baisely Park Cricket Field, Foch Boulevard and Long Street, Jamaica, New York.

After Everest ACS batted and posted a mammoth score in their inning the Atlantis batsmen were literally caged as the bowlers exercised total domination. Nobody was able to suggest a plausible reason for the failure of the Atlantis batting machine which included several centurions as well as a double-centurion.

Pic (Right): Everest ACS skipper Karan Ganesh led from the front with a blistering 88 which included 7 fours and 6 sixes. He then followed up with a bowling tally of 2 for 17. [Picture appears courtesy of Shiek Mohamed of NewYorkCricket.com]

On paper the Atlantis club fielded a better side than their rival, double centurion Nicholas Standford, the hard-hitting Henderson Blades, Alex Amsterdam, who once played for the Guyana National (Rest) Eleven; the destructive Kavishwar Bridgepaul; the wily left arm spinner, skipper Prasant Nair; the menacing pacer, Dwayne Hurley, just to name a few of the Atlantis stars.

Everest ACS combined older and younger players. Senior players like the former USA captain, Zamin Amin, Terry Hastoo, Saeed Amin, Trevor Walke, playing alongside youngsters like Greg Sewdial, a USA Under-19 player, Skipper Karan Ganesh, Shafeek Shaw. Player for player Altantis appeared to have the edge, but a cricket game is won on the field and not on potential. In this game, Atlantis did not perform.

Speaking after the game, Atlantis CC executive John Aaaron, when asked to sum up the game, said: " Everest ACS deserved to win. They batted and bowled well. We just didn't perform".

An unusually large crowd was on hand to witness the clash of the two most notable and well-organized clubs in the EACA. Both clubs have been around for decades and have won their share of championships during those years. Among the fans were EACA's long reigning president, Rudy Persaud, the workhorse of the EACA, Kris Persaud, the Regional Representative to USACA; NY Regional Director, Lester Hooper, who is an executive with the Atlantis club.

Milton Pydanna, a former West Indies ODI batsman/wicketkeeper took in the game while having a spirited conversation with several fans sitting within his proximity. Of course, the unofficial cook of the Everest ACS, 'Blair' Amin, the father of Zamin and Saeed Amin, as usual, was there giving loud vocal support to the members of his favorite team. John Aaron, the distinguished former Executive Secretary of USACA, was there. Players from numerous clubs in the EACA turned out in large numbers along with their club supporters. All came out to watch the "Clash of the Titans".

Everest ACS took first knock. Steve Nowrangilall and Shafeek Shaw opened the account for their team. By the end of the fifth over both were back in the showers, courtesy of medium pacer, Nicholas Sandford. With the score reading 29 for 2, Sewdial and Tamesh Balwant solidified the innings with a third wicket partnership that was worth 99 runs.

Balwant played the supporting role relegating the main role to the destructively hard-hitiing Sewdial. How destructive he was! Judge for yourselves. In his first 35 runs Sewdial hit 6 fours and a 6 while facing only 15 balls. Balwant (34) was then caught attempting a needless slog to long on with the score reading 128 for 3.

Skipper Karan Ganesh walked out to the crease. He had some anxious moments initially. In fact he should have been out before he had scored in the double figures. A misjudged skier dropped harmlessly to the turf. Gregory Sewdial and Karan Ganesh appeared to turn up their assault on the hapless bowlers a few notches. Greg was hitting fours while his skipper preferred to hit the ball over the fence for sixes.

With the fall of Sewdial's wicket the score read 168 for 4. Sewdial's contribution was a crushing 91 runs, hitting 15 fours and a lone six. Karan Ganesh continued to plunder the bowling attack; his favorite shot, hitting the ball over the fence. Zamin Amin "added salt to the wound" by hitting 22 runs in 19 balls. Ganesh finally was caught attempting yet another big hit. His 88 runs included seven fours and six sixes. The Everest ACS innings closed at 281 for 8.

At one stage of the Everest ACS innings it appeared that the Atlentis players were experiencing some frustration judging from their body language. The batsmen were toying with their bowlers while their fielders were grassing possible catches and mishandling grounders. Bowling for Atlantis Alex Amsterdam bagged 5 wickets for 58 runs in his 8 overs. Nick Standford ( 2 for 53) and Prasant Nair ( 1 for 51) accounted for the other wickets to have fallen.

Having to score 282 runs for victory in 40 overs (a run rate of over 7 runs per over) is indeed a daunting task considering the slow outfield. But Atlantis started on a positive note. The first ball Henderson Blades faced from medium pacer Trevor Walke was dispatched over the longon boudary for a massive six. The ball had to be retrieved from nearly a block away from the boundary fence.

Then in the third over Mason was caught playing a tentative stroke. He appeared to have changed his mind mid way through the shot and offered a diving catch to Greg Sewdial on the long-on boundary.

Wickets continued to fall at regular interval at one end while Nick Stanford offered a beligerent resistant. He clubbed three massive sixes and one four during his time in the crease scoring 33 runs. Henderson Blades made 23 runs while while number eight batsman, Sukhdeo hit 22. The Atlantis innings closed at 128 in 24.2 overs as they were outplayed by Everest ACS who for the second straight year took home the Eastern American Cricket Association championship.

The bowling honors for Everest ACS were shared by Zamin Amin (4 for 20 in 4.2 overs), Saeed Amin (2 for 49 in 8 overs), Trevor Walke (2 for 42 in 8 overs). Skipper Karan Ganesh (2 for 17 in 4 overs) while scoring 88 runs surely deserved the Man of the Match award.

NY Cricket Academy to kick off T20 cricket league during 2013

openingbat — Wed, 15 Aug 2012 14:45:00 GMT

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[Source: NY Cricket Academy]

The New York Cricket Academy (NYCA) is scheduled to kick-off its inaugural Twenty20 Cricket League in the 2013 Cricket Season.

All matches will be scheduled only on Saturdays, and NYCA invites all teams and players participating in the various leagues to become members of the Twenty20 League in order to improve the standard of cricket played in the New York Tristate area. Players will not be penalized for playing in NYCA's Twenty20 League while playing club cricket in other New York leagues.

NYCA will make sure that all cricket grounds are fully prepared before the start of play, and will also provide cricket balls to all teams.

As it is in any other cricket leagues an annual membership fee is required to participate, but the champions and the runners-up of the league will receive “monetary incentives” from various sponsors.

Businesses and individuals interested in a sponsorship package should contact newyorkcricketacademy@yahoo.com for the different sponsorship deals that NYCA has to offer.

For 2012, NYCA plans to stage a mini Twenty20 tournament sometime in late September 2012. Teams interested in participating in this year's tournament should register 15 players by emailing newyorkcricketacademy@yahoo.com before August 31st. The tournament will be played on a knock-out format in which an entry fee of $300 is required per team. A monetary prize will be awarded to the winner of the mini tournament depending on the total number of participants.

NYCA's T20 league will begin in 2013 with eight teams. The deadline for applications is October 1, 2012. An even higher number will be considered for the 2014 cricket season. All applicants can contact the organizers to request a membership applications.

The mission of the New York Cricket Academy is to promote youth cricket while playing competitive Twenty20 cricket, therefore teams interested in applying MUST have at least two U25 players in their 15-man team roster.

NYCA also plans on co-sponsoring a team each year to participate in the US Cricket Open, which is usually held during December in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

Beleaguered USACA President Gladstone Dainty visits New York Cricket Region

openingbat — Thu, 15 Sep 2011 19:22:00 GMT

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By John Aaron

Mr. Gladstone Dainty, President of the United States of America Cricket Association (USACA), last night visited with the New York Cricket Region (NYCR), at the invitation of Regional Director Mr. Lester Hooper. There were several New York cricket stakeholders in attendance, along with the region’s Representative to the USACA board Mr. Krish Prasad and USACA’s Executive Secretary Mr. John Aaron.

Pic (Right): USACA President Gladstone Dainty [File Photo]

The meeting was requested by the region’s director to give the national organization’s president an opportunity to update the region on several issues of importance to the region’s stakeholders, including national elections, funding promised earlier this year during a “Town-hall style” meeting, and the future of USA cricket.

However, the beleaguered Dainty only exposed his weak underbelly, inability to exercise good-governance and his poor leadership of USACA, when responding to questions posed by league presidents and others at the meeting. In response to the Regional Director’s query regarding USACA’s national elections, president Dainty stated that a Compliance Review process was expected to be implemented shortly to determine which leagues nationally would be allowed to participate in the upcoming USACA elections. Dainty acknowledged that the USACA board had set a national election date of October 15 this year, but the elections was more likely to be held the first week in November.

Secretary Aaron pointed out the improbability of that occurring, by drawing a timeline to suggest that the process as outlined in the organization’s Constitution, as well as the proposed open-ended compliance review initiative, both of which would obviously require more time than the president’s ambitious date of the first week in November. This argument was supported by league president Paul DaSilva, who said he too doubted elections could be held before the end of 2011. The latter later objected to the meeting discussing what he perceived to be USACA issues only. However, Secretary Aaron pointed out to the meeting that what affects USACA also affects the regions and by extension the leagues.

In Aaron’s time-line he noted that the law firm retained by Mr. Dainty, Teasurer Thickett and a few members of the board, had asked the entire board to respond to the proposed Compliance Review by September 15, noting that there was not enough time between when the actual Compliance Review is sent out to the leagues, responses compiled and reviewed, time allowed for presumably corrective action by those leagues deemed to be non-compliant and to respond, the nomination process, balloting, and the actual verification of the election process, between now and the first week in November 2011.

President Dainty, on several occasions in reference to actions taken at the national level, used the pronoun “we,” when explaining some actions taken and affecting USACA, in particular the appointment of a law firm to conduct the proposed Compliance Review. When asked by league president Rudy Persaud what or whom he meant by “we”? President Dainty, replied, “By ‘we,’ I mean USACA’s Treasurer John Thickett, a few board members and myself,” openly admitting that the entire USACA board was not being consulted or involved in the critical decision-making process of the organization. Mr. Dainty further went on to insult Mr. Persaud, by suggesting he (Persaud) was being used as a pawn by others to ask such questions, and further denigrated the league president by sarcastically suggesting Mr. Persaud was acting in a smart manner.

Secretary Aaron pointed out that there hardly would have been a need for the meeting if USACA held regular board meetings so that the region’s representative Krish Prasad could report back to his region, a point acknowledged by many in attendance, with the exception of Mr. Paul DaSilva, who rather quizzically inquired whether Mr. Prasad had told anyone. Mr. Prasad chided Mr. DaSilva for being absent from regional meetings and activities, while informing those in attendance that president Dainty had made a concerted effort to exclude the organization’s secretary and many of the board members from the decision-making process. A point Secretary Aaron amplified by explaining his involuntary removal from receiving the organization’s bank statements, explaining that president Dainty had instructed treasurer Thickett to remove his (Aaron’s) name and address from the bank’s records of where to mail hard copies of USACA’s transaction statements, in contradiction to an earlier decision taken at a meeting of the USACA board. President Dainty stated that he unilaterally made that decision based on his concerns of the friendship that existed between the secretary and the treasurer of USACA.

Clearly, such a basis for the president’s decision questions the integrity of the two nationally-elected officers, and their abilities to serve the organization with transparency and honesty. More so that of treasurer Thickett, who has been intimately involved in the recently signed Cricket Holdings America (CHA), LLC agreement, and handles thousands of dollars and other financial transactions on behalf of USACA.

Secretary Aaron could certainly not impact such transactions, merely from being privy to the in-flow and out-flow of the organization’s finances. Is there reason to conceal such information from the organization’s executive secretary, by president Dainty and/or treasurer Thickett?

Mr. Dainty side-stepped questions regarding the amount of money received to-date from the CHA, LLC deal, stating that current negative e-mails and other comments floating around were hampering the acquisition of investors. Secretary Aaron interjected that such public discourses would not have been necessary, had Mr. Dainty observed basic democratic processes and protocols, and in the best interests of USACA. President Dainty, however stated that he was optimistic that two or three investors were close to responding positively to the LLC, adding, USACA had spent more than $600,000 on tournaments this year alone, while never answering the question posed earlier by the regional director, Mr. Lester Hooper.

Secretary Aaron pointed out that the majority of board members and himself, were not privy to how the remaining amount of money – supposedly $850,000 - $1,100,000 received by USACA during the past year was spent, a point echoed by NYCR’s Krish Prasad, who said in the absence of information from the organization’s treasurer or president Dainty, or financial reports presented at board meetings, he, like many other Regional Representatives, was not au fait with USACA’s current financial position, nor in a position to report to their regions.

Mr. Prasad pointed out that Mr. Dainty had recently been informing several persons, including the New York region’s director, that he Prasad had received $8,000 in excess of the amount budgeted for the Under-19 training camp and the 2011 national women’s tournament hosted by the NYCR. Mr. Prasad produced copies of the budgeted amounts and supporting receipts and distributed same to those in attendance, while advising the meeting that the president had twice included the earlier amount of $8,000 deposited into the region’s account, suggesting the NYCR had received $23,000 in total, and was seeking to besmirch his name and to discredit the New York region. President Dainty, in response, stated that he was provided with the $23,000 figure by USACA’s treasurer, again publicly demonstrating his inability to govern from an informed perspective, and/or seeking to mislead or misinform the cricketing public, while implying treasurer Thickett did not properly advise him.

Mr. Prasad noted that the organization’s web site was accessed and said expense report and supporting documents were inappropriately published on the World Wide Web, and it was a deliberate attempt to portray the region in a bad light, despite the accountability of every dollar. Mr. Prasad said he had no problem with the information being shared worldwide, but it should be done for every region hosting a national tournament or training camp.

Secretary Aaron stated that indeed the document was posted in an unauthorized manner to the site and not by him, while pointing out that the only person in possession of the site’s administrative passwords enabling such an unauthorized posting, was president Dainty, who subsequently admitted that he had given the passwords to USACA’s interim 2nd VP Rafey Syed, who he added was now in the process of redoing the web site. Secretary Aaron pointed out that many decisions involving administrative and financial transactions were being executed without approval of the board as the policy-making arm of USACA, and that president Dainty was only too willing to admit that he, in many cases was unilaterally making such decisions, and outside the realm of the USACA Constitution. Mr. Aaron pointed out to the meeting that such actions were indicative of the dictatorial-style and poor leadership of USACA by the organization’s president on a regular basis, and done outside of not having an in-person board meeting during the past ten months.

Mr. Aaron informed those in attendance that the attitude of the president was a clear indication of Mr. Dainty’s efforts to deny them (the NYCR) proper representation, by denying the individual they elected to represent them, participation in the decision-making process, by not holding an in-person board meeting since November 2010, to adequately address issues in an in depth manner. President Dainty stated that the board had a meeting as recent as April this year, to which Secretary Aaron responded that it was not a fully constituted board meeting but a conference call to discuss the appointment of directors to the CHA, LLC board and Elections, the latter item resulting in the surprisingly unannounced appointment of the two interim vice presidents to the USACA board.

President Dainty claimed that Secretary Aaron failed to provide Minutes of seven board meetings, adding however, that he now had copies of those “Minutes” in his possession. Secretary Aaron responded that it spoke volumes of president Dainty’s inept leadership to allow seven meetings of the board to be held without the presentation of Minutes, before complaining. The USACA secretary stated for the record that there has never been a USACA in-person meeting where Minutes of the previous meeting was not properly distributed and presented, prior to the meeting. He added, what president Dainty was referring to, and was in possession of, are the documented notes from the teleconferences like the one held on April 29 last, adding that by the president’s own admission they were not formal meetings.

Krish Prasad, in referring to last night’s NYCR meeting with president Dainty, stated, “This meeting was a waste of time, because the president came here with a bunch of lies and was seeking to be divisive.” It was apparent very early on in the meeting that president Dainty did not come to the meeting prepared to respond to legitimate questions posed, but instead to confront his critics or those not deemed Dainty-friendly. He had earlier expressed to the region’s director, Mr. Lester Hooper, that he was only interested in meeting with the region’s director and the region’s league presidents, not the region’s representative to the USACA board Mr. Krish Prasad and USACA’s Executive Secretary John Aaron, both of whom reside in the New York region, prompting Mr. Aaron to state at the end of the meeting, that if the president was willing to lie in the presence of the two members of his board, what would he have said in their absence?

League president Rudy Persaud later said he felt humiliated by president Dainty response to him (Persaud) asking pertinent questions on behalf of the other league presidents,” adding, “The man insulted me by suggesting I couldn’t think for myself, and he’s the same person who called seeking my help in obtaining the support of other league presidents in 2008, when he was seeking the USACA presidency.”

President Dainty appeared ruffled at times and was explosive when challenged for answers by many of those present. League President Mascelles Bailey remarked that if the exchanges between the USACA president and those present, was any indication of the state of cricket in this country, then the sport was certainly in a whole lot of trouble.

At times, president Dainty was praiseworthy of the cricketing efforts of the NYCR, while at other times he appeared rattled by questions raised, either rambling in his responses or combative with those seeking answers. It was hardly a statesman-like performance.

In summation, president Dainty’s attendance at the meeting at times appeared to be tantamount to a filibuster, as he used up a lot of time in his opening soliloquy about the 1865 Mary Mapes Dodge’s Hans Brinker story of a little Dutch boy who placed his finger in a dike, and other irrelevant monologues during the meeting, all before exiting the meeting after spending less that 90 minutes and leaving a lot of unanswered questions, but promising to return next week, presumably on the weekend when he would have more time to address the concerns of the region. Ironically, that’s the weekend (September 24) that seven members of the USACA board had agreed to attend a meeting of the board and in New York, a date president Dainty had suggested, then quickly changed to October 1st. No doubt, why so many in New York and other parts of the country doubt whether president Dainty really wants to hold a USACA in-person board meeting, or for that matter national elections, anytime soon. It is left to be seen whether president Dainty would pay another presidential visit to New York next week.

One would imagine that a Presidential visit to a USACA region would have contained less combative rhetoric and more substantive cooperative solutions, or a well-defined vision by a leader, willing to move cricket forward in this country. However, president Dainty’s visit and insulting demeanor to some of those present, was anything but presidential, as he clearly showed his weak underbelly side as a leader, and his inability to democratically govern an organization such as the United States of America Cricket Association.

[Opinions expressed here are those of the author.]

USA Cricket: North West stuns New York to win 2011 USACA U-15 National Championship

openingbat — Fri, 22 Jul 2011 16:44:00 GMT

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By Peter Della Penna

North West bowler Rutvij Bhise’s 5 for 12 fueled a dramatic turnaround for his side as they defeated New York by five runs in the final of the 2011 USACA U-15 National Tournament on Monday afternoon at Keney Park in Hartford, Connecticut. New York was 181 for 1 in 25 overs, needing 39 to win with 10 overs remaining before Bhise’s medium pace sparked an incredible collapse that resulted in New York being bowled out for 214 in the 35th over to give North West their fourth consecutive U-15 national title.

“I was always confident. I just told my boys to keep attacking and that the match is not over until the last ball,” said North West U-15 coach Raj Badadare. “Once we got one wicket, we just attacked. No one on the boundary, short cover, short midwicket. Fielding wise they got charged up. We took three stunners, all diving catches. We were lucky enough to get Wilson. Had he continued then it would have been a different story. This was an absolute thriller.”

Randall Wilson opened the chase for New York and constructed a 167-run partnership for the second wicket with Rafeek Nazeer. The two were on their way to ending North West’s streak of consecutive titles at three until Bhise came on in the 27th over, the 10th bowler of the day used by North West. Bhise ended the big partnership by getting rid of Nazeer for 59. In the 29th over, he removed Wilson for 110 as momentum started swinging back North West’s way. In the 31st over, New York continued their tailspin by losing three more wickets, two more for Bhise and the first of three run outs.

Bhise completed his five wicket haul in the 33rd over but at the start of the 34th over, New York still had a reasonable chance to win with three wickets in hand and eight runs needed to win in 12 balls. However, Vibhav Altekar conceded zero runs and two more wickets fell, one to the bowler and another via a run out, as New York’s hopes of winning were hanging on by a thread with Bhise due to bowl the final over. Two balls later, Altekar effected the third run out of the innings to clinch North West’s fourth straight U-15 National Championship.

“Last year, New York had a much more balanced side. This year they depended on the two batsmen. Wilson played magnificently, there is no other way to say it, but the other batsmen gave it up,” said Badadare. “Once wickets started falling it was a hard to believe kind of thing. New York, I think they became overly defensive because it’s pretty clear when you have eight wickets in hand you should attack. They came out defending every ball just trying to take singles when the whole field was up.”

North West’s win was set up in the first innings by a pair of half-centuries from openers Neil Tagare and captain Dave Parikh. A year after striking 74 not out in the 2010 final against New York in New Jersey, Parikh scored 61 in Connecticut as part of a 162-run opening stand. Tagare finished with 88 before he was run out. North West eventually finished on 219 for 8 in their 35 overs which wound up being just enough in the end. Badadare says that his team’s commitment to training was what helped them win in the end.

“We started conditioning two or three months back,” said Badadare. “We had programs for most of the players. They were assigned to clubs in the leagues. Amit Buch was there for the last three months so I had made a special request to have one day in a week for a coaching session for these guys. [Former USA manager] Imran Khan helped us with some sessions.”

“It wasn’t just batting and bowling skills but teambuilding because most of the players were new. This team had nine or ten new players from last year’s team. The confidence level was low at the start but the last practice session before we flew to Connecticut we were full of confidence. This team was more balanced than last year’s team. We had no superstar, but everyone could chip in when it was needed.”

In the third place game, Atlantic defeated North East by seven wickets. North East was bowled out for 68 in 23 overs before Atlantic chased the runs in 17.2 overs. South East defeated Central East by six wickets to claim fifth place. Central East was bowled out for 47 in 22.5 overs with 23 of those runs coming in extras. South East crossed the target in 16 overs. South West got their first win of the tournament in the 7th place game, leaving Directors’ XI winless. Directors’ XI scored 68 before South West knocked off the runs in 11 overs for the loss of one wicket.

At the post-tournament awards ceremony, New York’s Wilson was named Best Batsman on the weekend after scoring 278 runs in four innings including two centuries and one half-century. North East’s Akhil Girnikar was named Best Bowler after finishing with eight wickets in four games. North West’s Vibhav Altekar was named Tournament MVP. Altekar made headlines on day two by scoring a double-century against South West.

Top Tournament Performances

Centuries
R. Mogalayapalli, Central East – 117 vs. Directors’ XI
V. Altekar, North West – 202 vs. South West
K. Singh, North East – 101 vs. Directors’ XI
R. Wilson, New York – 105 vs. Directors’ XI, 110 vs. North West

Half-centuries
G. Makin, Central East – 63 vs. Directors’ XI, 56 not out vs. North East
N. Tagare, North West – 59 vs. South West, 88 vs. New York
J. Gobin, North East – 57 not out vs. Directors’ XI, 71 vs. Central East
R. Wilson, New York – 56 not out vs. Central East
R. Nazeer, New York – 61 not out vs. Directors’ XI, 59 vs. North West
D. Parikh, North West – 61 vs. New York

Five-wicket hauls
R. Persaud, New York – 5 for 12 vs. Central East
R. Bhise, North West – 5 for 12 vs. New York

USA Cricket 2011 Twenty20 Nationals Day 2: Teams split honors as ground conditions reduce play

openingbat — Sun, 19 Jun 2011 13:37:00 GMT

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By Peter Della Penna in Edison, New Jersey

Teams and administrators struggled to cope with ground conditions for the second day in a row, but five matches were played with New York and Atlantic coming away on top in the Eastern Conference bracket while North West, South West and Central East all claimed victories in the Western Conference on Saturday at the 2011 USACA Twenty20 Nationals in Edison, New Jersey.

The matches were moved from Newark to the Edison area because the grounds designated for play were waterlogged and and most other grounds were unavailable as a result of local leagues having play scheduled for Saturday. At the Woodbrook Elementary School in Edison, only two matches were played on a field in which the grass was reportedly six to eight inches high or more. Balls were allegedly lost in the grass inside the field of play. Gowkaran Roopnarine turned in the top score of the day, blasting 96 runs off 58 balls as Atlantic posted 163 for 4 in 20 overs before defeating North East by 18 runs.

In the second match at the ground, New York throttled South East by seven wickets. South East won the toss and batted first, but not for long as they were bowled out for 77 in 16.3 overs. Adrian Gordon took 3 for 33 and leg-spinner Bryan Murphy 3 for 9. Only two players passed double-digits for South East with Syed Hasan top scoring with 23. Akeem Dodson had four dismissals behind the stumps. New York chased the runs in 8.5 overs for the loss of three wickets. Dodson finished 24 not out while Quasen Alfred also scored 24, including two sixes.

At Pine Grove Manor Elementary School in Somerset, the first match of the day scheduled between South West and Central West was delayed for more than two hours due to wretched ground conditions. The players showed up at the ground to find the field littered with broken glass bottles and drug paraphernalia.

Initially, it appeared that there might be no play at the ground as the captains and management of each teams were uneasy about playing on the field due to serious safety concerns. Ultimately, the players of all four Western Conference teams spent about 20 minutes collecting shards of glass by picking them up and putting them into plastic bags until the ground was deemed reasonable enough to begin play.

The first match was reduced to 15 overs, which South West won by 10 runs. SWR won the toss, batting first and posted 109 all out in 15 overs. Central West fast bowler Usman Shuja set the tone early on, taking 3 for 1 in three overs. Off-spinner Shail Bhatt then cleaned up the lower order, taking 6 for 24 in his three over spell.

Central West’s task of chasing the runs appeared to be straightforward at the innings break before they were informed that they had taken too long to bowl their overs and received a two over penalty, creating a target of 110 in 13 overs.

Elmore Hutchinson claimed the big scalp of Sushil Nadkarni, top edging a hook that sailed straight to fine leg. Hammad Shahid then accounted for Ryan Corns and Amir Nanji with a pair of short balls and Central West struggled to rebuild from 22 for 3. Kashyap Desai played a valiant knock down the order with 34 in 16 balls but it was not enough as Central West finished 99 for 9 in 13.

Central East won the second 15-over contest of the day, beating North West by 28 runs. CER won the toss and batted first as the opening pair of Darshan Patel and Saminda Siriwardena put on 52 runs for the first wicket. Siriwardena in particular looked majestic as he top scored with 42 off 29 balls including seven fours, every one of them flayed through the off side. Central East finished at 139 for 7 in their 15 with Sunny Singh taking 3 for 11 in two overs for North West.

Singh and Srikanth Sundaragopalan then one-upped CER by putting on 66 runs for the first wicket in reply for North West. Singh finished with 40 and Sundaragopalan with 25, but when the pair got out the North West innings ran out of steam and they finished on 111 for 6.

The final match of the day was a 12-over game between North West and South West, with NWR coming out on top by six runs. North West won the toss and batted first, notching 128 for 5 in their 12. North West was 63 for 3 in eight overs, but more than doubled their score in the last 24 balls. Syed Fareed Ahmad led the charge at number five, scoring 40 not out off 20 balls including four sixes while Ashok Singh blasted 26 in 8 balls, with five fours and a six.

South West kept the run rate in check during the early part of their chase as Ricky Singh and Peshaan Wedanarachchi had a brisk 59-run opening stand. South West then lost three wickets in three balls as Singh left for 35 at the end of the fifth and Wedanarachchi for 19 at the start of the sixth over. Amit Sood was then out first ball on the second delivery of the sixth over by Ahmad to make it 59 for 3.

South West still looked a good chance to win until Marcus Stewart fell for 26 off 12 on the fourth ball of the 10th over to make it 102 for 5 and Hutchinson fell on the next ball, both men claimed by left arm spinner Samarth Shah.

South West needed 13 to win off the last over, but couldn’t pull it off, finishing 122 for 8 in 12. Crucially, the umpires called two five-ball overs in a row, the seventh and eighth overs. Had South West been able to use those two extra deliveries to score, the match may have turned out different. Shah finished a superb spell with 4 for 20 in three, including a tremendous final over under pressure.

Sunday will have three 15-over games played at Weequahic Park in Newark. The first fixture is scheduled to start at 9 a.m. between South East and North East. Central West vs. Central East and New York vs. Atlantic are the other two matches on tap.

USA Cricket 2011 Twenty20 Nationals Day 1: No play after rain leaves grounds unplayable

openingbat — Fri, 17 Jun 2011 21:42:00 GMT

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By Peter Della Penna in Newark, NJ

Overnight rain left Bloomfield’s Watsessing Park in a state of disarray, forcing all Friday matches at the venue to be canceled while a severe afternoon thunderstorm brought heavy rain and hail to Newark’s Weequahic Park to bring a complete abandonment to the first day of the 2011 USACA Twenty20 Nationals.

Image (above): A view of the infield and pitch of Watsessing Park at noon time on Friday. Despite morning and afternoon sun, overnight rain left the field unplayable. [Courtesy: Peter Della Penna/DreamCricket]

Two games scheduled for 9 a.m. were postponed while organizers drove to different grounds in the area looking for a suitable replacement for Watsessing Park as the infield there was filled with puddles from steady showers overnight. After surveying backup grounds including Orange Park and Warinanco Park, no ground was deemed suitable as a substitute.

Meanwhile, Weequahic Park was drying out and after an 11 a.m. meeting with all managers at the team hotel, it was announced that two matches would still be played there with the first one scheduled to get underway at 12:30 p.m. However, when 12:30 came around, the ground was not ready for use, despite bright and sunny conditions, because the matting pitch had not yet been laid down and nailed in for play to begin between South East and New York.

The toss finally took place at 1:30 with South East winning and electing to field. The players took the field and play was set to begin at 1:40 when showers came across the field and chased the players off just before the first ball was about to be bowled. The mat was not covered and with the pitch now very damp, a further delay ensued. With more storms on the way, the pitch was then covered and a short time later a massive thunderstorm rolled through the park, sending players and administrators racing to their cars. In addition to the rain, hail stones also began falling for 10-15 minutes. The storm was so bad that the area in the vicinity of Weequahic Park suffered flash flooding. Play was then canceled for the rest of the day.

Image (above): A flash thunderstorm left this tent in ruins at Weequahic Park after the teams left the field. [Courtesy: Peter Della Penna/DreamCricket]

Regardless of the fact that play was canceled, several teams have begun voicing their displeasure with how the event has been organized thus far. Disregarding the fact that the infield at Watsessing Park was waterlogged, players who visited the field on Friday morning were shocked to find that the field did not appear to have been cut anytime recently, with blades of grass reaching between four and six inches high. The hotel that is being used for this tournament is in a rundown area of East Orange and the front desk in the hotel lobby is encased in what appears to be bulletproof glass.

It is currently unknown how much play, if any, will take place on Saturday. In all likelihood, Watsessing Park will be unavailable for the entire weekend due to its poor drainage. Even if any other grounds are not affected by the rain, the local leagues in New Jersey opted not to cancel play for this weekend which makes finding an available ground increasingly difficult. Options will be reevaluated by tournament organizers overnight before deciding the best way to proceed with the event.

While rain played a major part in ruining play on Friday in New Jersey, conditions are forecast to be bright and sunny all weekend in Plano, Texas. Russell Creek Park in Plano was slated as the original host of this weekend’s tournament until a dispute between local organizers and USACA administrators resulted in the Central West recusing itself from hosting the tournament.

Op-Ed: New York Cricket Region Elections marred by confusion

openingbat — Tue, 26 Apr 2011 13:42:00 GMT

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By John L. Aaron

The upcoming New York Cricket Region (NYCR) election appears to be mired in controversy, with two sets of characters – the protagonists and the antagonists. Clearly a script is unfolding that can only hurt, not help cricket in the region and further create a divide among the stakeholders.

The 1859 Charles Dickens’ novel - A Tale of Two Cities may be well-suited as a backdrop as the election plays out, with some very colorful characters reenacting the pivotal response to a note from one of the novel’s characters Jerry Cruncher, instructing Jarvis Lorry to wait at Dover for a young woman. Lorry’s response was a cryptic “Recalled to Life.”

An Elections Committee comprising Mr. Paul DaSilva, (NY Nassau League) Chairman; Mr. Mascellus Bailey, (Metropolitan League); and Mr. Wesley King (Brooklyn League) was appointed by Regional Director Mr. Selwyn Caesar. Subsequently, Mr. Patrick Sutherland, (Brooklyn League), was appointed to coordinate the election process for and on behalf of the region, due to the unavailability of Mr. Wesley King, the region’s Secretary.

The election was originally set for April 24, 2011, that was subsequently changed to May 1, 2011. On March 19, 2011 Mr. Sutherland issued an advisory e-mail inviting applicants wishing to serve in the various positions on the regional board to submit their applications no later than April 16, 2011. Clearly the election committee thought that was enough time for anyone wishing to serve, to submit their application and resume.

It is reported that several individuals jumped at the opportunity to serve New York cricket and complied by honoring the request of the Elections Committee and its Coordinator Mr. Sutherland. It is believed that all the positions were accounted for by one or more interested persons. The Elections Committee set April 24, 2011 as the date when the candidates would be interviewed for the various positions however, the deadline for the submission of applications and resumes was suddenly extended to April 22, with interviews scheduled for April 26, 2011.

Why the deadline for applications was extended by almost one week and after applications were already received for every position? Well according to the region’s Secretary Mr. King, he is being blamed for creating confusion by circulating the USACA elections timeline for regional and national elections. One fails to see how the two issues may have been confused with each other, or the Secretary could be blamed for any confusion, unless the confusion was deliberately created as a smoke screen for the dastardly act about to be inflicted upon the New York cricket stakeholders, and those enthusiastic individuals who have already tossed their hats into the ring.

Is it fair to have extended the deadline for applications? You be the judge based on the following facts –

Mr. Paul DaSilva, Chairman of the Elections Committee and principal architect of the timeframe and deadlines for applications and interviews, has single-handily extended the deadline, with the support of the Regional Director Mr. Selwyn Caesar, and…Whoa! Mr. DaSilva, according to reports, has inserted himself as a candidate for the position of Regional Representative.

According to the other member of the committee Mr. Mascellus Bailey, “I first heard of the extension at the same time as everyone else. I was not consulted, nor was my opinion sought. Not a phone call or anything. Now, I am being told that publicly I am linked to extending the deadline.” The Metropolitan League president added, “I have absolutely nothing to do with the extension of the deadline for applications, and I don’t agree with it. I would’ve agreed if there were positions still open and no one had applied by the April 16 deadline set.”

Calls to Mr. DaSilva have gone unanswered, despite a request for a return call from this writer.

Dickens’ cryptic message of “Recalled to Life” is an eerily symbolic notion of Mr. Paul DaSilva being unearthed, dusted off, and self-imposingly thrust upon the NYCR leagues as their representative on the USACA board. According to one league president, Mr. DaSilva has often failed to attend regional meetings, field teams for inter-league or The Mayor’s Cup matches, and pulled down the region’s web site in an unceremonious manner, thus denying the region an opportunity to showcase itself.

It is alleged that several persons from Mr. DaSilva’s league have now thrown their hats into the ring after he extended the deadline for applications. Self-serving, you ask?

The Regional Director Mr. Selwyn Caesar was gracious enough to return my call to him, and he expressed surprise that no league president had contacted him regarding protesting the extension of the application deadline, nor the fact that the Elections Committee Chairman had inserted himself into the race for Regional Representative. Mr. Caesar stated, “I did not anticipate Paul entering the race, nor did he discuss same with me. If so, I would have given him a different direction prior to the application, and not to run,” adding, “The inclusion of Paul DaSilva into the race, is a personal concern of mine and it bothers me.”

When pressed on whether he was in agreement with the extension, Mr. Caesar said yes, because he was a part of that decision, adding, “The elections should go forward as dictated by the extension process, since no league president has contacted me regarding any protest.”

The question one is tempted to ask here is, “Was the league presidents or other members of the regional administration consulted on extending the deadline for applications?” The answer is blatantly obvious, since not even the other member of the Elections Committee was consulted, not even by a phone call.

In direct contrast to Mr. Caesar’s claim of being unaware of any protests from the league presidents, there appears to be a united front against the electoral process now employed by the Chairman of the Elections Committee and the Regional Director, along with Mr. Sutherland the Elections Committee Coordinator/Secretary.

I contacted Mr. Sutherland earlier today for a response to the issue and he advised me that the decision to extend the deadline for applications was, “…made by the Elections Committee.” When asked if that included himself, he stated that he was only the Secretary and had nothing to do with the decision. I informed Mr. Sutherland that Mr. Bailey had denied any connection with the extension of the deadline; therefore it was safe to assume that the decision was solely Mr. DaSilva’s. Mr. Sutherland asked if it was possible to consult his notes and to get back to me shortly. I have not heard from Mr. Sutherland since.

President of the Commonwealth League, Lesly Lowe stated, “It’s absurd what’s going on. I am appalled by the situation. This election process is being run by someone who does not have this region at heart and does not attend regional meetings, and he is now running to represent the region.”

Mr. Milford Lewis, President of the New York Cricket League said, “The USACA time line was forced upon us, however, I did not have a problem with it, and it is obvious we are not following that anyway.” He however stated that, “As a member of the regional administration, I was not privy to any discussion regarding the extension of the application process, and only saw it when I received an e-mail stating that the deadline was extended.”

When contacted, Mr. Wesley King, NYCR’s Secretary was very disturbed by the claims made by the Regional Director Mr. Caesar, which blamed him (Mr. King) for creating the confusion regarding the election timeline. He said, “As Secretary, I distributed the information to the entire regional administration, because it came from USACA, so I don’t see how I can be blamed for doing that.”

Mr. King went on to express his dissatisfaction regarding the extension of the deadline for applications, stating, “The Elections Committee should have contacted the league presidents before extending the deadline,” adding, “It (the deadline) should only have been extended if there were no applicants/candidates for one or more of the positions.”

Eastern American Cricket Association President Rudy Persaud said that the process was corrupt and, “It’s not fair to those candidates who have already applied by the original deadline of April 16, and set by the Elections Committee. There was no confusion about the USACA dates and the Regional Director did not ask the league presidents if they were confused.” He added, “I was not in agreement with moving the application deadline and I was very surprised. However, I was advised by Mr. Sutherland that it was the Elections Committee’s decision.” Mr. Persaud went on to say, “I now know that Mr. Bailey was not a part of the decision to extend the applications deadline.”

Mr. Persaud said that it appears as though the lame-duck Regional Director (Mr. Caesar) who is not seeking reelection is uninterested in what happens within the region, as he is on his way out. He cited a recent invitation to the NYCR from the Office of the Mayor of New York and the New York City Parks Department to attend a meeting to plan the 2011 Mayor’s Cricket Cup and Mr. Caesar declined on the basis that he would not be around this year, during The Mayor’s Cup.

NYCR’s Regional Representative to the USACA board Mr. Krish Prasad, a candidate for the same position in the upcoming election said, that when he heard about the deadline being extended, he contacted his league president (Rudy Persaud) and the Regional Secretary (Wesley King), both of whom said they were not privy to the decision and could not offer him a plausible explanation. Mr. Prasad added, “It appears to me as though many of the regional administration members are being kept in the dark, and I am concerned that there are individuals outside of the NYCR, seeking to influence the outcome of the elections.”

I spoke with two of the candidates contesting the regional elections and who submitted their applications prior to the original deadline of April 16, 2011. Both responded on the condition of anonymity, stating that the deadline extension appears to have been engineered to accommodate a group of people seeking to control the NYCR. Both candidates unequivocally stated that it was unfair to them and the other candidates who submitted their applications on time, before the “mystery” (according to one of them) extension appeared. The confusion appears to surround the candidates and the regional administrators, all except for Mr. Caesar and Mr. DaSilva.

If only Charles Dickens was still around, he may have very well wondered what the dickens was happening in the New York Cricket Region. Is it a tale of two cities? On one side the power grabbers and on the other side, the hapless cricketers and other stakeholders.

[Opinions expressed in this column are those of the author. They do not necessarily represent the views of DreamCricket.com.]

John Bowne HS - NY PSAL's newest team - wins inaugural match

openingbat — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 20:12:00 GMT

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By Peter Della Penna

“Remember to protect the wickets,” Vinny Romano told his players in the John Bowne team huddle right before they went out to bat in a New York PSAL match for the first time. “I don’t want any of you guys going out there trying to swing for fours and sixes early on.”

The 60-year-old Romano has coached golf, volleyball and wrestling in his many years at John Bowne High School in the Flushing section of Queens, but this year he’s taking on a new role to help support a group of students desperate to play cricket.

“I never ever thought in this country I’d be able to do this,” said Tenille Rajkumarsingh, who came to America when she was 12 and is the only female playing for John Bowne. “I used to play in Trinidad for my school and I came here and they didn’t have cricket. So when I found out they had cricket in my senior year, I got excited.”

Image (above) - Coach Vinny Romano (center), gives his John Bowne team some motivation and final instructions before they went out to bat for the first time against Bronx High School of Science. [Courtesy: Peter Della Penna/DreamCricket]

John Bowne played its first ever match on Monday afternoon against Bronx High School of Science to start the fourth season of cricket in the PSAL. There was overwhelming interest at the school for several years and the students had support from the school’s athletic director but still had to overcome some obstacles to get registered as a varsity sport.

“I said okay if you really want a team, I need to see the interest, I need you to get students to sign up so they went and did that,” said Desiree Alloggiamento, the athletic director at John Bowne. “They had gotten a list of about 25 students, first names, last names, ID numbers. They were really serious. I asked them what experience they had and they said they’ve all played before. They came to me almost every single day and wanted to know ‘Are we getting a team?’ So it’s really because of the students.”

“My principal and I discussed it. We requested a team with the PSAL. We were told that we actually were rejected at first due to financial reasons on the PSAL’s behalf. So the students were disappointed.” But after William Grady High School dropped the sport for 2011, it opened the door for John Bowne to take their place.

“Then the PSAL called us and said that we were able to get in the league and would you want to still do it,” said Alloggiamento. “I said absolutely because these kids like I said they were coming to me all the time.”

“They’ve given me a lot of support, the school principal, the athletic director,” said Romano. “In less than a month’s time, I had to recruit players, buy uniforms, buy equipment, get equipment sent. They gave me great practice space ahead of other teams, I hate to say it, because we’re a new sport and they wanted it to get off the ground. Whatever I needed, they just said go spend it and you’ll be reimbursed.”

The John Bowne team arrived early at Kissena Park in Queens on Monday afternoon, champing at the bit to get on the field. Bronx HS of Science didn’t arrive until 30 minutes after the scheduled 4 p.m. start time but the match finally got underway with John Bowne getting good contributions from Vish Pathania with 32 at number three as well as Hammad Hussain scoring 35 not out at number nine, including the first six in John Bowne’s history in the 18th over. They finished at 148 for 9 after 20 overs.

Image (right) - Hammad Hussain (13), hits a delivery through midwicket on his way to top score with 35 not out for John Bowne. [Courtesy: Peter Della Penna/DreamCricket]

Due to the late start, the second innings didn’t begin until after 7 p.m., so it was near certain that the final result was going to be determined by run rate once darkness set in. Bronx HS of Science had trouble scoring off the bat, but the John Bowne bowlers made the game close with the amount of wides conceded, 29 in eight overs before the match was called. However, two tidy overs from Ritvik Iyer sealed the match for John Bowne. He came on as the fifth bowler to be used, but took 4 for 11 in his two overs of seam bowling to pin Bronx HS of Science back at 53 for 5 when the match was called and John Bowne was declared the winner after finishing with a better run rate.

“It feels good,” said Ali Shahbaz, John Bowne’s captain. Shahbaz and his teammates didn’t know what to expect prior to the first game, but have been filled with tremendous optimism seeing how it all went. “We thought that we weren’t gonna win because Bronx High School’s been playing for three years. Now since we have a win, this was like a practice match for us. We want to go ahead and not lose any games at all. We want to make it to the finals.”

Coach Romano was equally nervous before the day started, but gained some insight from his team’s first outing.

“I just didn’t want to embarrass myself,” said a smiling Romano at the end of the day. “I could judge by baseball skills and similar skills that cricket has with other sports, but I never watched anybody else play cricket so I didn’t know what to expect from our kids. I’m very happy they produced.”

After only one match, Romano has seen the influence that having cricket established at John Bowne can have on the community.

“Because I’m also a Coordinator of Student Activities, I hope the student participation at all activities in the school increases. I think by getting different ethnic communities involved in different sports, that would only help the school to better itself,” said Romano. “I think it would be a valuable attraction for a lot of the communities. One of the gentleman I saw who was watching the game today, he told me, ‘I was thinking about sending my kids to John Bowne, but now that they have a cricket team, I’m definitely going to send them to John Bowne’ because he lives right in the neighborhood.”

New York Cricket Region to hold regional election on May 1, 2011

openingbat — Wed, 23 Mar 2011 01:56:00 GMT

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Source: New York Cricket Region

New York Cricket Region will hold its regional election on Sunday, May 1, 2011. The region published a timeline, detailed guidelines for its elections, FAQs and Job Descriptions, all of which are presented below. The region announced that Patrick Sutherland would serve as the Election Secretary and everyone interested in seeking a position in the NYCR Administration must submit an application and resume outlining their experience and qualifications to the Election Secretary by Saturday, April 16, 2011.

The following is the contact information for the NYCR Election Secretary: Patrick Sutherland, 518 East 42 Street, Brooklyn, NY 11203; patricksv1@aol.com; Fax - 718) 434 - 5540; Cell - 718) 865 - 1888

Timeline

(1) Friday March 18, 2011: (a) Publication of guidelines and a timeline for the regional election of officers, (b) publication of job titles, roles and responsibilities of office holders when elected and (c) notice regarding applications for positions on the regional administration (Potential candidates are required to submit an application with a RESUME outlining any/all cricket related experience for the position, no exceptions).

(2) Saturday April 16, 2011: Deadline for receiving applications and resumes from candidates.

(3) Saturday April 23, 2011: Meeting of League Presidents to review and screen candidates who submitted applications and resumes to the Secretary of the region.

(4) Sunday May 1, 2011: NYCR election of officers – 1.00pm (venue TBD).

On the day scheduled for the election, the New Regional Administration shall interview candidates who applied for the position of Regional Representative before selecting a Regional Representative to represent NYCR as a member of the USACA Board. The following is a timeline for the NYCR election of officers which is schedule to be held on Sunday May 1, 2011.

Frequently Asked Questions - NYCR Electoral Process

1. WHAT IS THE TIMELINE FOR NEW YORK CRICKET REGION ELECTION?

The following is the timeline for the NYCR election of officers -- scheduled for Sunday May 1, 2011.

• Friday March 18, 2011:

a. Election Notice regarding applications for positions on the regional administration
b. Publication of guidelines and a timeline for the regional election of officers
c. Publication of job titles, roles and responsibilities of office holders

• Saturday April 16, 2011: Deadline for receiving applications and resumes from candidates

• Saturday April 23, 2011: Meeting of League Presidents to review and screen candidates who submitted applications
and resumes to the Secretary of the region

• Sunday May 1, 2011: NYCR election of officers – 1.00pm

2. WHAT POSITIONS ARE AVAILABLE ON THE NEW YORK CRICKET REGIONAL ADMINISTRATION?

Following are the Positions that are available on the New York Cricket Regional Administration:

• Regional Director/Chairman
• Member-at-Large as a Youth Cricket Coordinator
• Member-at-Large as a Women’s Cricket Coordinator
• Member-at-Large as a Marketing & Fundraising Coordinator
• Member-at-Large as a Umpiring Program Coordinator
• Secretary
• Treasurer
• Regional Representative to the USACA Board (ex-officio Member)

For specific details for each position refer to the Job Descriptions below.

3. HOW DO I APPLY FOR A POSITION?

a) All persons interested in seeking a position in the NYCR Administration must submit a resume with their appropriate
experience and qualification to the Election Secretary by Saturday April 16, 2011.

b) Please refer to the Regional Elections Guidelines above for further details.

4. WHERE CAN I GET A COPY OF THE GUIDELINES FOR THE NYCR ELECTORAL PROCESS?

Copies can be obtained from the NYCR Election Secretary or from the Cricket Websites.

5. WHERE CAN I GET A COPY OF THE USACA CONSTITUTION?

You may email the NYCR Election Secretary or go to the USACA's WebSite at www.usaca.org, click on "The
Organization" then "The Constitution".

6. WHO SHOULD I CONTACT IF I HAVE A QUESTION ABOUT THE ELECTORAL PROCESS?

You may contact the NYCR Guidelines Committee Chairman, Mr. Paul DaSilva, by telephone at 917-202-1880 or by email
at pad1995@aol.com

Guidelines

1. Overview

Election of officers for New York Cricket Region (NYCR) is due in the electoral year of 2011 in accordance with the USACA constitution. The election process requires members of NYCR to elect persons to fill positions on the regional administration for a 3-year term commencing in FY2011.

At present there are no written and/or formal guidelines or processes available from NYCR or USACA regarding the election of persons to serve as officers of regions. NYCR as a result, would be drafting guidelines and processes for conducting its election within the requirements of the USACA constitution.

A sub-committee from the region was appointed to analyze the USACA constitution and make recommendations regarding guidelines and processes for an election of officers.

The regional administration shall interview and appoint the secretary or an appropriate person(s) to conduct the election as an independent person on behalf of the region.

2. Election Meeting Notice

2.1. The secretary, after consultation with the regional director/chairman, shall provide notice to members of the region – regional administration, members of leagues, clubs and stakeholders etc. - via electronic mail, USACA website and the media to advise that a special meeting of the region would be convened for the purpose of electing officers of the region.
2.2. The secretary shall provide notice regarding the date, time and venue of a special meeting when a date for the meeting is approved by the regional administration.
2.3. The secretary shall also provide written notice of the election to the executive secretary of USA Cricket Association (USACA) and request USACA provide an Independent Observer for the election.

3. Regional Administration Positions

3.1. The secretary shall publish a list of positions on the regional administration for which persons would be invited to submit an application for a specific position accompanied by a resume.
3.2. List of Positions
i) Regional Director/Chairman
ii) Member-at-Large as a Youth Cricket Coordinator
iii) Member-at-Large as a Women’s Cricket Coordinator
iv) Member-at-Large as a Marketing & Fundraising Coordinator
v) Member-at-Large as a Umpiring Program Coordinator
vi) Secretary
vii) Treasurer
viii) Regional Representative to the USACA Board (ex-officio Member)

4. Eligibility Requirements

4.1. Candidates must meet the eligibility requirements established in the USACA constitution regarding age and residency etc.
4.2. Each candidate nominated for a position on the regional administration shall be eighteen (18) years of age or older and a citizen or legal and permanent resident of USA.
4.3. Candidates are required to be residents of NY State (NYCR) and shall continue to reside in the region during his/her term of office.
4.4. Each application shall include the person’s legal name, contact information and each candidate at the discretion of the regional administration may be required to provide relevant information to an entity selected by NYCR or USACA for the purpose of conducting a back ground check prior to, during or after the election. League Presidents by virtue of their respective office may
not be subject to the background check process.
4.5. Each candidate shall indicate in writing that he/she is computer literate and is capable of communicating via a computer and be fairly proficient with the use of MS Word, MS Excel and email.
4.6. The application must be submitted within the date and time specified. Applications submitted beyond the timeline specified will not be considered.

5. Application Process

5.1. The Secretary shall provide notice to members of the regional administration, members of the region (leagues, clubs and persons) and via the media to advise that candidates should submit applications for positions on the regional administration via electronic mail.
5.2. The secretary shall provide a name, mailing address, fax number, email address and telephone number clearly stating the address to which applications accompanied by a resume from each candidate should be submitted.
5.3. Applications from candidates shall be submitted to the secretary of the region in writing clearly stating the position for which the application was intended.
5.4. Applications must be received by the secretary within the time period stipulated in the notice for the election in order to be accepted.
5.5. Applications must have the email address and telephone number of the applicant.
5.6. The secretary after receiving the applications shall notify each candidate within five (5) business days after receipt and to confirm the candidate’s request
5.7. The secretary shall compile and provide a list of all candidates under confidential cover to each league president of the region for evaluation at least ten (5) calendar days prior to the date scheduled for the election.
5.8. League presidents should be advised the applications and relevant information pertaining to the election are confidential and shall not be distributed and/or shared with persons who are not involved in the process.

6. Election Meeting

6.1. The regional director/chairman at a special meeting of the region convened specifically for the purpose of electing officers of the region shall call the meeting to order and announce that the regional administration as currently comprised shall be dissolved for the purpose of the election.
6.2. The regional director/chairman shall then reconvene a meeting of the regional administration comprised only League Presidents (or their designated representatives) with the regional director/chairman as chair of the meeting.
6.3. The regional administration (League Presidents only) by majority vote shall appoint a returning officer, from among themselves, to conduct the election process.
6.4. After the returning officer is seated, the regional director/chairman shall vacate his/her position as chairperson of the meeting.
6.5. The returning officer at his/her discretion may request retention of the secretary to record notes of the election process or the returning officer may appoint an individual to take notes at the meeting.
6.6. The returning officer shall validate the eligibility of members of the regional administration (League Presidents or their designated representatives only) and provide a list of candidates who were nominated for the respective positions.
6.7. The returning officer shall adjudicate on the validity of delegates who may be eligible to vote, proxy votes (if any), manage distribution and tallying of ballots, rule on disputes and challenges and ensure the election process is conducted within these guidelines and in accordance with the USACA constitution when/where applicable.

7. Proxy Voting - Proxy votes may be accepted provided the following guidelines are adhered:

7.1. The proxy vote was received by mail or hand by the secretary in a sealed envelope clearly marked
‘Proxy Vote’
7.2. The proxy vote was presented to the returning officer in the sealed envelope by the secretary as at
7.3. The proxy vote was opened by the returning officer in the presence of persons attending the meeting after the meeting was called to order
7.4. The proxy vote shall state the date of the special meeting and the name of the person to whom the proxy vote was awarded
7.5. The returning officer shall verbally state and record the number of proxy votes awarded

8. Election of Regional Administration

8.1. By default, League Presidents are standing members of the Regional Administration
8.2. The regional administration, comprising League Presidents, by majority vote, shall elect candidates who applied for positions on the regional administration.
8.3. Applicants/Candidates must be present at the election meeting.
8.4. Candidates who did not apply may not be considered for election.
8.5. The election shall be conducted for positions which shall be filled on the regional administration as follows:

A. Regional Director/Chairman
B. Members at Large (4)
i) Member at Large as Youth Cricket Coordinator
ii) Member at Large as Women’s Cricket Coordinator
iii) Member at Large as Marketing & Fundraising Coordinator
iv) Member at Large as Umpiring Program Coordinator
C. Secretary (non-voting member)
D. Treasurer (non-voting member)

9. Election of a Regional Representative to the USACA Board

9.1. At the first seating/meeting of members and officers of the Regional Administration, the Regional Administration shall select a Regional Representative to sit on the USACA Board.
9.2. The meeting to select the Regional Representative is chaired by the incoming Regional Chairman, who has a casting vote.

The regional administration when seated after the election process is completed shall comprise the following officers:

Regional Director/Chairman
League Presidents of the region
Youth Cricket Coordinator
Women’s Cricket Coordinator
Marketing & Fundraising Coordinator
Umpiring Program Coordinator
Secretary
Treasurer
Regional Representative to the USACA Board (ex-officio Member)

The secretary of the region, at the conclusion of the election process shall provide notice to the executive secretary of USA Cricket Association (USACA) regarding composition of the regional administration.

Voting on the Regional Board

The regional director/chairman shall only have a casting vote at meetings of the regional administration. League presidents (or their designated representatives) by virtue of their respective office are standing members of the regional administration and shall be eligible to vote at meetings of the regional administration. Each league president shall be a delegate at special meetings of the region convened for the purpose of electing officers of the region.League Presidents shall be eligible for one vote at all meeting of the region. Each League President is a delegate at USACA meetings and is eligible to vote at USACA meetings. Members at Large are not eligible to vote to elect officers of the regional administration in the event of resignations, terminations or other reasons. The Secretary and Treasurer respectively are non-voting members and are not eligible to vote at meetings of the regional administration. The Regional Representative is an ex-officio member of the regional administration and is not eligible
to vote at the meetings of the region. A League President shall not simultaneously serve as Regional Director/Chairman of the region. If/when a League President is elected to serve as a Regional Director/Chairman of the region, that League President
will be required to vacate his/her position as League President prior to being seated as the Regional/Director/Chairman of the region.

Job Descriptions - Elected Officials of the Regional Administration

1. Regional Director/Chairman
• The regional director/chairman is elected by the League Presidents and shall hold office for a period of three consecutive years commencing immediately after the conclusion of the meeting to elect the regional administration.
• The regional director/chairman after the election shall function as chief operating officer of the region with responsibilities for management of cricket programs and general day to day business administration of the region.
• The regional director/chairman shall preside at all official meetings of the region except for committee and sub-committee meetings at which the regional director may attend as an ex-officio member.
• The regional director/chairman shall have only a casting vote in the event of tie at meetings of the regional administration.
• In the event the regional director/chairman is unable to function as chairperson at meetings of the regional administration, league presidents attending the meeting and forming a quorum for a meeting shall convene as an ad-hoc committee and appoint a chairperson to conduct the business of the meeting in accordance with the published agenda.
• The temporary chairperson shall maintain his/her voting rights prior to the appointment as chairperson of the meeting and shall also have a casting vote in the event of tie.
• The Regional Director shall sign all documents which may require his/her signature, represent the region or designate an alternate representative to attend meetings, functions or other business activities/events on behalf of the Region.
• The regional director/chairman must ensure all resolutions, programs, contracts and commitments approved by the regional administration are implemented within established timelines.
• The regional director/chairman in consultation with members of the regional administration shall appoint committees and establish guidelines for the functional operations of committees.
• The regional director/chairman shall submit written monthly reports regarding the state of the region to the regional administration and USACA as appropriate.
• The regional director/chairman shall be accountable to the regional administration for the efficient administration of the region.

Knowledge and Skills
• Effective oral and written communication skills
• Capable of preparing and presenting a cohesive business plan for the region
• Capable of accessing the Internet and possess the required computer skills with capabilities in Microsoft Applications and other pertinent programs
• Possess a reasonable knowledge of cricket and/or cricket related programs
• Capable of supervising voluntary staff and developing and maintaining plans and programs for the efficient functioning of the region’s administrative and operational programs

2. Secretary
• The secretary of the region is elected by the league presidents and shall hold office for a period of three (3) consecutive years immediately after conclusion of the meeting to elect the regional administration.
• The secretary is a non-voting member of the regional administration.
• The secretary shall be responsible for management of the secretariat and perform all administrative functions on behalf of the region on a day to day basis or as may be directed by the regional director/chairman for time to time.
• The secretary shall be required to work with the regional director/chairman to ensure correspondence are processed in a timely manner, meetings arranged and notice provided to members of the region and officials and members of the region are kept apprised of all events and programs related to cricket in the region or as appropriate.
• The secretary shall be responsible for receiving official correspondence on behalf of the region and shall maintain a correspondence file with the names and addresses of officers of the region, leagues, clubs and USACA or other persons required for the efficient administration of the region.
• The secretary shall maintain a certified copy of the constitution and bylaws of the region in addition to other legal documents pertaining to its registration and incorporation etc.
• The secretary in consultation with the regional director/chairman shall make necessary arrangements for meetings of the region.
• The secretary shall function in any capacity as may be directed by the regional director/chairman and shall maintain documents and/or records of the region for audit purposes or as may be required from time to time.

Knowledge and Skills
• Effective oral and written communication skills
• Capable of preparing and presenting written reports
• Capable of accessing the Internet and possess the required computer skills with capabilities in Microsoft Applications and other pertinent programs
• Capable of recording notes and preparing minutes for meetings

3. Treasurer
• The treasurer is elected by the league presidents and shall hold office for a period of three consecutive years commencing immediately after conclusion of the meeting to elect the regional administration.
• The treasurer is a non-voting member of the regional administration.
• The treasurer shall be the chief fiduciary officer of the region and shall have care and custody of, and shall be solely responsible and accountable for funds of the region.
• The treasurer shall prepare and maintain a record of all financial transactions conducted on behalf of the region. The treasurer in the name of NYCR shall endorse all financial documents, deposit monies and payments made to the region at a bank or financial institution designated and approved by the region within five days (5) after the monies were received by the treasurer.
• The treasurer shall disburse funds of the region only upon approval of a voucher signed or document signed by the regional director/chairman or his/her designee.
• Funds shall not be withdrawn from a bank of financial institution without prior approval from the regional director/chairman. The treasurer shall ensure receipts are issued for all funds deposited for and on half of the region.
• The treasurer shall conduct periodic reconciliation of financial records of the region and shall reconcile all bank and financial institution statements each month to ensure there are no discrepancies.
• The treasurer shall prepare a financial report each month in addition to a financial report to coincide with the close of business for each fiscal year.
• The treasurer in conjunction with appropriate professional advice shall prepare or cause to be prepared, the required tax returns with the appropriate city, state and federal agencies in accordance with the region’s tax exempt status of NYCR.
• The treasurer shall maintain all financial records and documents for the region for audit purposes and shall function in any capacity as may be directed by the regional director.

Knowledge and Skills
• Effective oral and written communication skills
• Capable of preparing and presenting financial report for the region
• Capable of analyzing reconciling bank statements
• Capable of accessing the Internet and possess the required computer skills with capabilities in Microsoft Applications and other pertinent programs

4. Members-at-Large
League presidents, in the region, are required to elect four (4) members-at-large to serve as members of the regional administration for a three year term.
a. A Youth Cricket Coordinator
b. A Women’s Cricket Coordinator
c. A Marketing & Fundraising Coordinator
d. An Umpiring Program Coordinator

The members-at-large are voting members of the regional administration.

The specific roles and responsibilities of each member are as follows:

4.1. Youth Cricket Coordinator
The youth cricket coordinator shall be responsible for establishing cricket programs designed to recruit, train and develop players in the U23 age group.

The program should include processes to provide cricket coaching, personal development and prepare players for local, regional and national youth cricket tournaments.

The Youth Cricket Coordinator should be available to manage the youth cricket program in the region and coordinate events and activities on an ongoing basis.

Roles and Responsibilities
• Establish and coordinate the development of a youth cricket program in NYCR for multiple age groups
• Coordinate delivery of local, regional and international cricket tournaments in the various categories of players in the U23 age group
• Establish and maintain a data base with biological data of all players in the U23 age group which are/were registered to and participated in youth cricket programs in the region
• Ensure consistent delivery of high quality youth development programs in NYCR
• Work in conjunction with the Administration, Coaches, other stakeholders, persons and/or organizations interested in the promotion and development of youth cricket in NYCR and USA
• Prepare and annual budget for the youth development program in addition to expense projections
for training and youth tournaments
• Coordinate and organize cricket matches and tournaments with teams, clubs and other regions in an effort to provide the training and experience required to develop and prepare players and viable team(s) in NYCR
• Attend meetings of the Regional Administration and provide information regarding progress of ongoing processes and programs related to the region’s youth cricket development program
• Attend meetings in/out of NYCR related to youth cricket as may be required from time to time
• Prepare written reports for review by the Regional Director/Chairman and members of the Regional Administration on a need to know basis
• Perform any/all other duties ancillary to the promotion and development of youth cricket in NYCR

Knowledge and Skills
• Effective oral and written communication skills. Capable of preparing and presenting a cohesive youth development plan for the region
• Capable of accessing the Internet and possess the required computer skills with capabilities in Microsoft Applications and other pertinent programs
• Capable of developing and maintaining practice and tournament programs and schedules required for the ongoing management of the youth development program

4.2. Women’s Cricket Coordinator
The Administration shall appoint a Women’s Cricket Coordinator who shall be responsible for designing a program required to recruit and train women players.

The program should include processes to provide cricket coaching and prepare players for local, regional and national women’s cricket tournaments.

Roles and Responsibilities
• Establish and coordinate a program for the recruitment and training of women to participate in cricket in NYCR Provide help and advice to the Administration regarding funding, functional operations, organizing and other aspects of women’s cricket and its development
• Establish and coordinate the formation of women’s cricket team s and/or leagues and coordinate and manage the development of a women’s cricket programs in NYCR
• Coordinate the delivery of local, regional and international cricket tournaments for women
• Establish and maintain a data base with biological data of all women players who were recruited and/or participated in cricket tournaments for and on behalf of NYCR
• Coordinate and organize cricket matches and tournaments with teams, clubs and other regions in an effort to provide the training and experience required to develop players and prepare a viable team(s) in NYCR
• Ensure consistent delivery of high quality women’s cricket development program in NYCR Establish a program for Coaches to provide technical assistance and training required to improve the knowledge and quality of cricket among players.
• Work in conjunction with NYCR Administration and Coaches in/out of NYCR to establish programs and prepare budgets on an annual basis for programs and tournaments
• Attend meetings related to women’s cricket as may be required
• Prepare written reports for review by the Regional Director/Chairman and members of the Regional Administration on a need to know basis
• Perform any/all other duties ancillary to the promotion of women’s cricket in NYCR

Knowledge and Skills
• Possess effective oral and written communication skills
• Capable of preparing and presenting a cohesive women’s cricket development plan for the region
• Capable of accessing the Internet and possess the required computer skills with capabilities in Microsoft Applications and other pertinent programs
• Capable of developing and maintaining practice and tournament programs and schedules required for the women’s cricket program

4.3. Marketing & Fundraising Coordinator
The marketing and fundraising coordinator shall be responsible for promoting the region in a commercial manner and secure funding, sponsorship and other commercial benefits for the region.
• Responsible for advertising cricket in the region
• Promote the region at commercial and public events
• Advertise events and tournaments on behalf of the region in the media and on websites
• Promote and advertise the region’s brand
• Establish programs to market clothing and other paraphernalia with the region’s log
• Organize and promote fundraising events on behalf of the regions

Knowledge and Skills
• Possess effective oral and written communication skills
• Capable of preparing and presenting a cohesive marketing plan
• Capable of accessing the Internet and possess the required computer skills with capabilities in Microsoft Applications and other pertinent programs
• Available for travel within the region to meet and communicate with persons and business entities as appropriate

4.4. Umpiring Program Coordinator

The umpiring program coordinator shall be responsible for managing umpiring related programs for and on behalf of NYCR

Knowledge and Skills
• Effective oral and written communication skills
• Capable of accessing the Internet and possess the required computer skills with capabilities in Microsoft Applications and other pertinent programs

5. Regional Representative

The New York Cricket Regional administration, consisting of league presidents and the members-at-large, shall elect a regional representative to represent the region as a member of the USACA board of directors.

The regional representative shall hold office for a period of three consecutive years commencing immediately after the conclusion of the FIRST meeting of the regional administration to elect the regional representative.

The regional representative shall represent the interest of the region and shall function in accordance with directives issued by the region.

The regional representative shall function as an ex-officio member of the region and shall not be eligible to vote at meetings of the region.

Knowledge and Skills
• Effective oral and written communication skills
• Capable of preparing and analyzing reports
• Capable of communicating with members of the USACA board and cricket officials at the local regional and international levels
• Possess a level of cricket acumen which would ensure the region is represented in an effective manner
• Capable of accessing the Internet and possess the required computer skills with capabilities in Microsoft Applications and other pertinent programs

USA Cricket: USACA cancels 2010 Junior Nationals; South East squad members injured in car wreck

openingbat — Wed, 29 Dec 2010 04:23:00 GMT

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USACA Media Release

New York - December 28, 2010: The National Under-19 tournament scheduled for Woodley Park in California this week was called off earlier today. Sheikh Manaf Mohamed, USACA's VP and Director of Cricket Operations said, "As a result of full teams from New York and the South East Region being unable to get flights out to California due to the snow storm that blanketed the northeastern United States, we have had to cancel the tournament."

The New York Region squad has been stranded in New York since yesterday, resulting in the team being unable to arrive in time for today’s start of the tournament. However of greater concern at this time is the condition of three of the South East Region’s players Ryan Ramnarine, Zachary Sattaur and Steven Taylor, along with Ryan’s sister Neisha and their father Wayne Ramnarine, who were all hurt when the vehicle in which they were traveling from Ft. Lauderdale’s airport, following their flight cancellation, ran off the I95 turning over several times in the process.

Recent reports from the region’s Secretary Ivor Henry confirmed that Wayne Ramnarine and USA national player Steven Taylor were released from Hollywood Memorial Hospital with minor scrapes and bruises. Remaining hospitalized were Zachary with a broken bone, which is causing pressure to his spine, Ryan with a deep gash on his hand, and the most seriously hurt the driver 20-year old Neisha Ramnarine who is in Intensive Care with multiple fractures. Ryan Ramnarine is expected to be released later today from the hospital.

Image: Five people, including three South East U-19 squad members, made it out this car alive after an accident in which the car flipping over multiple times. [Courtesy: Wayne Ramnarine]

Our collective thoughts and prayers are with the injured youths and their families. We hope everyone has a full and speedy recovery.

With almost one third of the South East Region’s squad involved in the accident and the New York Region’s team stranded in the Big Apple, USACA has called off the tournament. However, every opportunity is being made to engage those players in California along with the North West and South West Regional teams, in practice matches under the watchful eyes of the national selectors, Meanwhile in New York, Krish Prasad, USACA’s Cricketing Committee chairman said that a New York indoor camp is tentatively being organized for the weekend of January 8-9, 2011 for the New York, North East and Atlantic Region players. A select group of those players will then be short-listed to join a group from this week’s California scrubby matches in a national camp of 24 players, and including players scouted in the other regions. The camp will be held sometime in mid-January in Florida. The selectors will then pick the final squad to represent the USA at the ICC Americas Under-19 tournament scheduled for February 6-13, 2011 in Florida.

USA Cricket: 2010 Junior Nationals Preview

openingbat — Mon, 27 Dec 2010 11:06:00 GMT

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By Peter Della Penna

This week, the USACA Junior Nationals will be played at Woodley Park in the Los Angeles suburb of Van Nuys, Calif. The following includes a profile of each U-19 team at the event.

New York – The strongest squad on paper may not make it to the event to fight for the U-19 national championship. The team’s scheduled flight for Monday out of JFK has been canceled and the airport will be closed until Tuesday morning at the earliest. Sources have indicated that the team may not be able to get a flight to Los Angeles until Thursday, which would be too late to take part in any games.

It would be a shame if that is the case because the event would be deprived a whole lot of talent. Andy Mohammed and Regis Burton both represented USA at the U-19 World Cup in 2010 while Mohammed went on to make it into the USA senior team in May. Zahib Tariq was one of the standout players at the U-15 national tournament in July while several other players in the squad have strong reputations playing in local and regional cricket.

New York squad: Andy Mohammed (captain), Kavishwar Bridgepaul. Regis Burton, Trinson Carmichael, Casper Davis Jr., Saumil Gandhi, Rocky Kowchai, Haraldo Marshall, Cameron Mirza, Prashanth Nair, Amarnauth Persaud, Maurice Powell, Trevor Singh, Zahib Tariq.

North West – The champions out of the Western Conference showed no ill effects from the departure of a handful of key players who led the team to the national title in 2009. Jodhbir Singh stepped up in a big way at the U-19 tournament at Woodley in August, scoring 188 runs in three matches including a century in the deciding match of the tournament against South West. Haramandeep Singh took 6 for 17 against Central East at the same event and will look to replicate that form once more at Woodley.

There are four players who played for the USA U-15 squad in 2009 who are looking to make a mark in the next phase of youth cricket at the U-19 level: Arsh Buch, Krish Goel, Pranav Pradhan and Roshan Varadarajan. Buch and Varadarajan played key roles in leading the U-15 team to the national title this year and they will look to pull off a double with the U-19 side.

North West squad: Pranay Suri (captain), Abbas Akhtar, Arsh Buch, Mihir Deo, Krish Goel, Akash Jagannathan, Karteek Kankanala, Haramandeep Kumar, Imran Nana, Zulkifl Nana, Prumjot Panesar, Pranav Pradhan, Jodhbir Singh, Ramandeep Singh, Roshan Varadarajan.

South East – The team has a few exceptional talents, but its overall depth is not as good as some of the other teams in the event. At the Eastern Conference tournament in Connecticut last August, the team rode the performances of tournament MVP Zain Ali Syed to finish second.

A big boost to the team is the return of Steven Taylor, who didn’t participate in August because he was on tour with the USA men’s team in Italy. Ricky Nayar will also be a key player in deciding the fortunes of the team in Los Angeles.

South East squad: Samarth Barot, Sunil Deopersaud, Kwiese Edmondson, Shaquille Forbes, Fraz Jaferi, Suneel Kumar, Vaibhav Nayar, Viraj Patel, Ryan Ramnarine, Zachary Sattaur, Mohammad Sheik, Zain Ali Syed, Steven Taylor, Awasi Yasin.

South West – The home team has a distinct advantage with knowledge of the local conditions. But just like the South East team, they will be counting on a few big names to make up for a lack of depth.

Hammad Shahid and Salman Ahmad figure to play a big role in USA’s qualifying run for the 2012 U-19 World Cup and some good performances at this event will give them a bit of confidence heading into the international fixtures in February. Ahmad was used primarily as a bowler during USA’s journey to reach the 2010 World Cup, but has worked hard to develop his batting and scored a century vs. Central West at the U-19 Western Conference in August. He is supported at the top of the order by Ryan Amaratunga, who scored 94 in the same innings that Ahmad reached his ton.

South West squad: Hammad Shahid (captain), Quresh Ahmad, Salman Ahmad, Shakeel Ahmad, Ryan Amaratunga, Arjun Anandan, Mohammad Awara, Shayan Abdul Ghani, Pronit Dutta, Malhar Gotikar, Kunal Jethi, Sawaab Niazi, Gurpreet Sandhu, Viraj Sehgal.

Tournament Schedule – All games are scheduled for 40 overs starting at 9 AM local time (12 PM EST) at Woodley Park in Van Nuys, Calif. DreamCricket.com will be providing live updates for all games at the event.

Tuesday December 28
New York vs. South West
North West vs. South East

Wednesday December 29
New York vs. North West
South East vs. South West

Thursday December 30
New York vs. South East
North West vs. South West

USA Cricket: 2010 Junior Nationals set for December 28-30 in Los Angeles

openingbat — Thu, 02 Dec 2010 10:06:00 GMT

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By Peter Della Penna

The USACA 2010 Junior Nationals, originally scheduled for November 12-14 in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., before being postponed will now take place from December 28-30 at Woodley Park in Los Angeles. The dates were confirmed by USACA Vice President of Operations Manaf Mohamed.

Teams representing the New York, North West, South East and South West Regions will compete to be the National Champions at the U-19 level for 2010. North West has already won the Senior Nationals and the U-15 National Championship this year. They are also the reigning U-19 National Champions from 2009.

Speaking about the decision to host the tournament in Los Angeles instead of south Florida, USACA Cricket Committee chairman Krish Prasad said one reason for the move was that USACA was looking to save money on travel costs for this tournament by having it in Los Angeles since two of the teams, North West and South West, are primarily based in California.

USACA will be using the tournament to help select a team for the 2011 ICC U-19 Americas Qualifier. According to Mohamed, that tournament will be hosted this year by USA in Florida from February 7-12. Matches will be held at the Central Broward Regional Park in Lauderhill and Brian Piccolo Park in Cooper City. USA will be competing against defending champions Canada, as well as Bermuda, Bahamas, Cayman Islands and Argentina.

Should USA finish in the top two at the ICC U-19 Americas Qualifier like they did in 2009, they will advance to the U-19 World Cup Global Qualifier. Several Canada-based web sites have reported that the Global Qualifier is expected to take place in Ireland next July, but no official announcement has been made by the ICC. Teams at the Global Qualifier will be competing for spots in the 2012 ICC U-19 World Cup at a site yet to be determined.

USA Cricket: There's nothing 'Spooky' about the talent of Akeem Dodson

openingbat — Wed, 17 Nov 2010 13:39:00 GMT

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By Peter Della Penna

In the summer of 2004, a 16-year-old named Akeem Dodson was just starting to earn his stripes at Villagers Cricket Club in New York’s Metropolitan League. At the time, he had just joined the club and even though he had represented USA at the U-19 level a year before in Canada, he was mostly unknown to his Villagers teammates. Villagers captain Orlando Baker then decided to slap a nickname on him to make him a little bit easier to identify.

“This guy used to play first class for Jamaica, Mario Ventura, a left-hand batsman,” said Baker. “He resembled Spooky. They bat the same way, left-handed, the way they *** their bat and everything. So I said, ‘Yo Dodson, your new name is Spooky.’ This guy reminds me so much of Spooky and that name stuck on him.”

“When I first got to Villagers, he was the captain of Villagers. I remember the first time I went there, I went to watch one of the games and they told me to come to a meeting,” said Dodson, recalling his version of events. “I went to a meeting and sat down and they were playing dominoes. I don’t think he remembered my name. He looked at me and just called me Spooky. Like a smart person I answered. So since then it’s been that.”

However, Baker says he knew exactly who Dodson was and he could tell just by looking at him bat that the teenager had a promising future and that was the reason behind giving him the nickname. “He’s like, ‘Bakes, who is Spooky?’ I said, ‘Spooky’s a big bat mon. I’m giving you a big bat name, so don’t worry.’”

Dodson’s big bat and big name have been making the rounds of US cricket since he went with USA’s squad to the 2006 U-19 World Cup in Sri Lanka. Like most of the other players in that team, it was a rapid rise for Dodson to national prominence.

After being born in Queens, N.Y., Dodson’s family took him back to his father’s native Guyana when he was two years old. He stayed there until he was 12 when his parents divorced and his father took him to rural Pennsylvania where cricket became an endangered species in his life.

Image: Akeem Dodson in action for the Bedessee NY Destroyers. [Courtesy: www.newyorkcricket.com]

“For the two years I was in Pennsylvania I didn’t play any cricket,” said Dodson. “I always had a bat and a ball with me though. I would hit it in the house up against the wall sometimes. My dad would get mad at that.”

When he was 14, he moved to Brooklyn and once again resumed cricket. His skills hadn’t eroded and just a year later in 2003, he was selected to play for USA’s U-19 squad in Canada at the Americas Qualifier for the 2004 U-19 World Cup.

“I felt a certain sense of accomplishment,” said Dodson. “If you get picked for a national team, you were among the 14 best in your country. Being picked to represent your nation is always an honor. I felt really proud. My father was proud of me.”

The bigger accomplishment though was when USA did a u-turn in the span of two years to go undefeated at the 2005 U-19 Americas Qualifier, knocking off Canada in the process to qualify for the U-19 World Cup, USA’s first ever World Cup appearance at any level in cricket.

“I remember that year when we won, we had gone from losing the time before to going and blowing out everyone,” said Dodson. “We were hyped. Yeah let’s go now. We couldn’t wait to go [to Sri Lanka].”

With limited training resources compared to the Test level countries, it could have been a daunting and intimidating process for many of the players. But one member of the management team says he was impressed how Dodson adjusted under the circumstances.

“When we went to the World Cup, the thing that I was most curious about was to see which one of our guys on the team would be able to step up to that next level to compete against the best at their age group in the world and in my opinion, Akeem was one of the guys that did that,” said Basil Butcher Jr., USA’s trainer on the U-19 tour to Sri Lanka.

“The World Cup really taught me to be more patient, especially batting,” said Dodson. “Before that, they used to call me a shotgun because I used to play shots off everything.”

Coming off the heels of the U-19 World Cup, Dodson made two tours with USA’s senior team. The first was going back to Canada later in 2006 with the squad for the ICC Americas Division One tournament. He did not get a game, but got valuable experience being around the side. In November 2008, he did get to suit up for three games when USA went to Guyana for the WICB Cup, where he was captained by Baker, and then stayed in the squad for the ICC Americas Division One tournament in Florida where USA went undefeated to win the title. Since then, he has not appeared for USA.

Butcher has tried to pin the reason down to a few areas, one of which he feels is that Dodson never completely eliminated his shotgun habit.

“He has to bat longer,” said Butcher. “He seems to have a tendency, he’ll hit a bowler around for a short period of time and then give his wicket away. That’s one thing I think he needs to improve on in terms of just wanting to put a higher price on his wicket.”

Image: Akeem Dodson keeping wicket at the Radiant Info USA Twenty20 2010. [Copyright: DreamCricket.com]

Another point that Butcher says that Dodson needs to work on is fine-tuning his technique, something which Dodson wholeheartedly agrees with.

“I think the biggest part of my game that’s hurting right now is the technical stuff,” said Dodson. “As I start to mature in my game, that’s what’s really giving me away. When I was younger, a lot of times I would lack the strength or the physical ability to do something, but now that I have the physical ability, it’s the little technical things that usually gets you.”

One extremely beneficial experience that Dodson took in during his time away from the senior team was to spend the summer of 2009 playing for Waresley Cricket Club, which plays in the UK’s Huntingdonshire & Cambridgeshire League on Saturdays and the Bedfordshire County League on Sundays. Over the summer he posted a career best 190, which was the highest score at the club during the season. Dodson hopes he’s helped to play a part in changing the perception in the minds of Waresley’s opponents about the capabilities of Americans playing cricket.

“They were shocked,” said Dodson. “Every time I’d tell them that I’m an American, they were like, ‘What?! You’re American?!’”

Baker for one has noticed how that time in the UK has helped Dodson’s game.

“I think Dodson’s cricket has progressed a lot. I think the stint he did in England did a lot for his cricket. When Dodson joined Villagers, he was still at youth level cricket and his cricket has grown and he’s matured a lot,” said Baker. “Sometimes I’m just kind of surprised that he’s not really given the opportunity at the national level but then everybody see things different. For me he’s always one for the future because he’s a naturally talented cricketer. He’s very athletic. He can keep, he could bat, he could field. He’s not only a good keeper but he’s also a very good fielder. I always encourage him to keep working and whenever time you get an opportunity, you make use of it.”

Just weeks after turning 23, Dodson had a disappointing time with the bat in Atlanta at the USACA Eastern Conference Tournament playing for the New York Region in September, but this weekend he has a chance to make amends at the USACA Senior Nationals in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. In the process, he can plant a seed in the minds of selectors that he is ready for another shot at returning to the national team. At last year’s December trials, Dodson was harshly overlooked despite being one of only two players, with Ryan Corns being the other, to complete a 1.5 mile fitness test in under 12 minutes. It’s that kind of hunger and serious approach that Baker feels will stand Dodson in good stead for whenever his next chance may come.

“He’s always in good physical shape,” said Baker. “I’ve never seen him turn up to a camp unfit. That’s one thing that I admire about him as a kid. That’s something you can’t take away from him because he’s always ready.”

Intrasquad match provides preparation for New York Region junior and senior players

openingbat — Mon, 18 Oct 2010 17:56:00 GMT

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By Peter Della Penna

The New York Region’s preparation for next month’s USACA National Tournaments got into full swing on Sunday with an intrasquad match at Idlewild Park in Queens, New York. It was part of a fundraising doubleheader as the New York U-15 team took on an U-15 side from Indoor Cricket USA (NJ) in a T20 match earlier in the day before U-19 and senior team members played in the afternoon.

“I always like to see them play on a regulation ground because a lot of the games we practice are on smaller grounds so it’s good to get them to feel the size of the regulation ground,” said Patrick Sutherland, the New York Region U-19 team manager. “They can get acclimatized to what would be happening in the championship.”

The friendly format of the match allowed U-19 players to play both alongside and against senior players from the region that are likely to represent the region in Florida as each side looks to win a national championship.

“I thought it was a great idea because it would have been pretty much lopsided if the senior team were to take on the U-19s, but in all I didn’t think today was about winning or losing,” said Steve Massiah, captain of the New York Region senior team. “It was just about giving everyone an opportunity because the next couple of weeks pretty much we wouldn’t have an opportunity to do much before we go off to Florida because of the weather. I thought it was important that we played collectively.”

The U-19 captain, Andy Mohammed, led a squad of mixed players against one captained by Massiah. Mohammed won the toss and elected to bat first on a chilly and windy day at one of the top cricket grounds on the east coast.

Dennis Evans and Cameron Mirza opened the batting for the Mohammed XI, but Mirza didn’t last long, run out without scoring when he pushed to mid off and chanced the arm of Adrian Gordon, who fired a direct hit with Mirza a yard short to make it 11 for 1. Mohammed arrived at the crease and built a steady partnership with Evans, adding 40 for the second wicket before Mohammed shouldered arms to the first ball he faced from left arm spinner Barrington Bartley to be clean bowled for 9.

Trevis Ross came on and continued to make inroads for the Massiah XI, getting Trevor Singh for 1 and Regis Burton for a duck as both men played across and were struck in front to make it 53 for 4. Bartley claimed Evans for 32, caught on the long off boundary by Gordon to make it 55 for 5 before Ross had Keon Lake stumped for 14 to make it 70 for 6. Glen Hall was clean bowled for 13 trying to pull a good length ball from Gordon to make it 100 for 7.

The score was 123 for 7 after 20 overs, but in an effort to make the chase more competitive for the Massiah XI, the first innings was extended to 25 overs. Teenagers Amarnauth Persaud and Rocky Kowchai provided some lower order resistance for the Mohammed XI as each player added 27 runs. They combined for their side’s biggest partnership of the innings, 45 runs for the eighth wicket, before Kowchai was bowled off an inside edge at the start of the 24^th over to make it 145 for 8.

Cameron Mirza reappeared for a second batting stint coming in at number 10 and could have been run out again after a dreadful mixup on his first delivery, but the magnanimous Massiah fielding at cover recognized the need for everyone to get adequate practice and he graciously opted to hold onto the ball after collecting it with Mirza stranded. Persaud was bowled in the final over by left arm spinner Trinson Carmichael before last man Casper Davis Jr. was run out for 1 on the last ball of the innings as the Mohammed XI finished with 154.

“Overall, the youngsters the way they applied themselves and the way they approached their innings was good to see but I just think they need to work a little bit more on the fundamentals,” said Massiah. “They need to apply the basics a little more, whether it’s in the field or running between the wickets and to tighten up their technique because certainly as you go on to the next level, your technique will be tested.”

The Massiah XI started their innings in fading light, a product of a delayed start to their match while waiting for the U-15 game to end as well as the extension of the Mohammed XI’s first innings. Carl Wright and Akeem Dodson opened the chase, but Wright departed on the third ball of the innings for 2, going for a big hit off Davis only to sky a chance to Mirza coming in from the cover boundary.

Massiah came in and teamed up with Dodson for a breezy 37-run partnership. Massiah then tried to get creative and walked down the track to Kowchai but drove a fullish ball straight to Singh at mid off to go for 21. Bartley joined Dodson, but their partnership only produced 14 before Dodson sliced a good length ball from Persaud high to Evans at third man, who settled under the ball to take the catch and Dodson was gone for 21 to make it 53 for 3 after 8 overs.

Teenage left arm spinner Saumil Gandhi then struck twice to halt the Massiah XI’s progress even further. First, he dismissed new man Ileo Freeman, who played inside the line of a good length delivery and was clean bowled for 2. Next, he got rid of Bartley for 7 when the batsman played onto his stumps going for a drive to a full and wide delivery to make it 60 for 5 in the 11^th over. Gordon joined Kavishwar Bridgepaul at the crease and after 11 overs the score was 64 for 5.

At this point, the light had been deteriorating at a steady rate, but play continued until the first ball of the 12^th over. Persaud was bowling to Bridgepaul when the batsman flat batted a good length ball back to the bowler at head height. Persaud was late reacting and the ball struck him in the throat. He fell to the ground while Bridgepaul, Gordon, wicketkeeper Mohammed and the rest of the fielders sprinted in to check if Persaud was okay. The match was then called off by the umpires.

Image: Former USA U-15 player and current New York Region U-19 player Amarnauth Persaud. [Courtesy: Ricky Kissoon]

“I thought the benefit of everyone involved was to get a run out pretty much,” said Massiah. “We haven’t played collectively since the last tournament we would have played in Atlanta. So it was good that a couple of the guys came out today. We were able to get some meaningful practice but it’s pretty sad that it ended in the way which it did.”

After several minutes, Persaud was able to get on his feet. According to players who were on the field, Persaud was breathing okay. He was eventually escorted into an ambulance. New York U-19 coach Ricky Kissoon said that Persaud was being taken to a hospital as a precautionary measure. It was the U-19 team’s second casualty of the day after Prashanth Nair sustained a hand injury in the first innings trying to catch a ball off the bat of Evans. Nair was fielding on the boundary in the third over and jumped high to try to prevent a six, hurting himself in the process. He was unable to take any further part in the game.

New York Region Exhibition T20 Match

Massiah XI vs. Mohammed XI

No result – match suspended after 11.1 overs in second innings were completed

Mohammed XI won the toss and elected to bat

Mohammed XI Innings

Batsman Runs Balls 4s 6s Dismissal

D Evans 32 23 3 1 ct Gordon b Bartley

C Mirza 0 6 0 0 runout (Gordon)

A Mohammed*+ 9 11 1 0 b Bartley

T Singh 1 4 0 0 LBW Ross

R Burton 0 3 0 0 LBW Ross

K Lake 14 6 0 2 st Dodson b Ross

G Hall 13 29 0 0 b Gordon

A Persaud 27 40 1 0 b Carmichael

R Kowchai 27 26 1 1 b Powell

C Mirza 6 5 0 0 not out

C Davis Jr. 1 2 0 0 runout (Tariq/Dodson+)

Extras 24 (5 no balls, 1 bye, 6 leg byes, 12 wides)

Team Total 154 all out in 25 overs

Did not bat: K Darlington, S Gandhi.

Fall of Wicket: 11/1 (Mirza), 51/2 (Mohammed), 53/3 (Singh), 53/4 (Burton), 55/5 (Evans), 70/6 (Lake), 100/7 (Hall), 145/8 (Kowchai), 153/9 (Persaud), 154/10 (Davis Jr.).

Massiah XI Bowling Overs-Maidens-Runs-Wickets

A Gordon 2-0-17-1

K Bridgepaul 2-0-15-0

R James 2-0-20-0

B Bartley 3-0-23-2

T Ross 3-0-7-3

T Carmichael 4-0-14-1

M Powell 3-0-15-1

Z Tariq 2-0-8-0

S Massiah 2-0-16-0

C Wright 2-0-12-0

Massiah XI Innings

Batsman Runs Balls 4s 6s Dismissal

C Wright 2 3 0 0 ct Mirza b Davis Jr.

A Dodson+ 18 18 2 0 ct Evans b Persaud

S Massiah* 21 17 2 1 ct Singh b Kowchai

B Bartley 7 15 0 0 b Gandhi

I Freeman 2 3 0 0 b Gandhi

K Bridgepaul 6 9 0 0 not out

A Gordon 1 2 0 0 not out

Total Extras 7 (0 no balls, 0 byes, 5 leg byes, 2 wides)

Team Total 64 for 5 in 11.1 overs

Did not bat: Z Tariq, T Ross, T Carmichael, M Powell, R James, P Nair.

Fall of wicket: 2/1 (Wright), 39/2 (Massiah), 53/3 (Dodson), 55/4 (Freeman), 60/5 (Bartley).

Mohammed XI Bowling Overs-Maidens-Runs-Wickets

C Davis Jr. 4-0-23-1

R Kowchai 3-0-22-1

A Persaud 2.1-0-8-1

S Gandhi 2-0-6-2