CRICKET

Cricket in Tampa Bay area gets a boost with Chanderpaul’s visit

Former West Indies batsman Shivnarine Chanderpaul shares inputs at the training camp.

By: Sattwik Biswal

TAMPA CRICKET LEAGUE (TCL) founded in 2007 is one of the main organisers of Adult and Youth Cricket events in the Tampa Bay area.

In September 2016, TCL kicked off the Youth Program with one single coach and a few students. Since then, it has expanded and as of today, there are 60-plus participants enrolled in the programme.

Keeping up with the new trends, and with the need for more trained coaches to manage future training programmes, TCL recently hosted a weekend-long training camps for the existing and new coaches. It was facilitated by Jatin Patel, renowned multi-sports coach and cricket hall of famer in USA, who also pioneered cricket coaching and scholastic programmes for the schools.

Patel also provided TCL an opportunity to join hands with Sarasota International Cricket Club (SICC) and also invited West Indies legend Shivnarine Chanderpaul to the youth camp.

He along with Chanderpaul interacted with the youth players and coaches while providing correction measures and technical tips.

The session turned out to be very interactive as both Chanderpaul and Patel shared their immense knowledge of the game. All the sessions were practically conducted, starting from the basics of the game, player engagement and participation.

“Around 60 kids with their parents participated to make a successful event for the sport of cricket in our area, which is essential to inspire and motivate more youth players to pick up the game,” Nitheesh Shetty, president of TCL said.