Pitching in for a U-16 cap

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Earlier this week at the north end of Maharaja’s College Ground, there was a crowd of young enthusiasts, dressed in white, their faces reflecting excitement and their body language displaying vigour.

The whites numbered 176 and they were there for the selection for district under-16 cricket team.
The boys from various regions in the district arrived with their parents, who waited, anxiously, to watch their kids perform.

Akshay, 15 and Aditya, 12, had come with their father Deepak who had taken a day off from duty to accompany his sons, one a wicket-keeper batsman and the other a spinner.

When asked how he feels about the cricket craze of his two sons, Deepak responded, “Akshay had attended under-13 and was in the district team, but, for Aditya it is his first time. The more the participants better the results so I am hoping that my boys will learn something good from the trials.”

Ravi Kumar, BCCI cricket coach said that number of participants attending the selection trials has increased this year as compared to previous years.

“Perhaps, the advent of IPL has influenced the young minds, who are taking to cricket more seriously nowadays,” said Ravi.

There were 78 registrations as all-rounders, 55 as medium pacers, 17 in the spinning department and the interesting of all, 14 wicket-keeper batsmen. “Compared to previous years, the number of keeper-batsmen coming forward for selection has increased and the credit goes to Dhoni who has inspired youngsters,” said K.S.B. Murali, a state panel umpire.

Meanwhile, Chandrasekharan, a proud parent recalled his school days where he too was an aspiring cricketer. He accompanied his son Murali from Piravom, who is a left hand batsman and right-arm medium pacer.

“He is only 13-years-old and it’s not going to be an easy task competing with senior boys, but I am sure it’s going to be an enriching experience for my boy and I could not say no to him when he said he wanted to be here today,” said Chandrasekharan.