Eventually I see all full ICC membership countries coming here – Gladstone Dainty

If the New Zealand and Sri Lanka two international cricket matches played in Lauderhill, Florida recently were historic occasions then they went by unnoticed by mainstream America.

It was the first time that two full member countries of the International Cricket Conference had played on US soil and it was considered groundbreaking as the United States of America Cricket Association embarked on an ambitious plan to climb the game’s ladder where it would one day play against the best in the world.

While the two Twenty20 games created little interest outside the cricket community, the USACA administration considered the project a success.

USACA president Gladstone Dainty said: “The fact we had two international teams broke the ice. It wasn’t a financial success, but we were not looking at it being a financial success.”

Dainty was pleased that the two games, with Sri Lanka and New Zealand each winning a game, had taken place after the administration led by Chief Executive Officer Don Lockerbie working for months to get Sri Lanka and New Zealand on board.

Dainty is fully behind the idea to get international teams to play in the US, which will help improve the standard of the game in the US.

When asked about the possibility of future internationals in the US, he said: “Absolutely. We will persevere with this. It was ice breaking and we will continue to bring teams here of that kind of level.

“Eventually I see all full ICC membership countries coming here.”

The process of getting the cream Test playing countries like Australia, England, India, South Africa, Pakistan and the West Indies is difficult and USACA is also looking at back up plans to get English county teams like Yorkshire and Australian state teams such as New South Wales to play in the US and against the US national side.

He also said that Ireland and Guyana were possibilities of playing in the US.

While Dainty is optimistic about the future of internationals being played in the US he said that the marketing for the Sri Lanka-NZ games could be improved.

He said: “I was disappointed that we wasted an opportunity to get all our clubs and leagues involved in this and they wanted to be a part of it.”

New Zealand captain Daniel Vettori and Sri Lankan skipper Kumar Sangakkara are also in favor of more internationals being played in the US.

Both teams said the pitch lacked bounce and pace, but this could be easily improved and administrators in the US and New Zealand did not see this as an obstacle.

According to reports, New Zealand turf manager Jared Carter is expected to be involved in the preparation of the pitch next year to try to make it at a better standard for a first class contest.

New Zealand sees a huge growth market in the US and also realizes it will take time for the program to gain traction with Americans, sponsors and the media.

The ICC is anxious to see the game to grow in the US and there has been some talk of the Champions Trophy being played on American soil, but it appears the earliest this will happen, if it does,  will be in 2015.

ICC regulations stipulate two venues close to each other, but Florida only has one and several practice facilities are also needed for teams to work out and prepare for their matches, but there are no other turf pitches in the area.

Former Australian Test captain Ian Chappell, now a broadcaster and columnist, said in one of his cricinfo.com columns …“if cricket is to become a viable sport in the USA, eventually the officials have to attract some genuine American fans. This is why the experiment this time, unlike those attempted in the past, is critical; the only way cricket is going to attract American fans in reasonable numbers is via the Twenty20 version of the game. ”

Naik – a traditionalist with new ideas to help cricket grow among Americans

Mahesh Naik loves his cricket. He embraces the game’s long standing traditions, but he is also open to new ideas to help promote the sport among Americans even though it might raise an eyebrow among the establishment.

Naik does not mean to upset the traditionalists in cricket, but he knows that if the game is to flourish in the United States it needs new ideas to appeal to Americans as potential players and spectators.

The 41-year-old software engineer in Phoenix, Arizona, is toying with introducing two dismissals with one delivery, which would add excitement and happen rarely. He also likes allowing batsmen to score runs while the ball is still airborne before a catch is completed. Another idea he wants to implement one day is having portable synthetic pitches.

The pitches could be moved to different fields and would eliminate any confrontations with City officials about damaging fields.

“Maintaining a turf pitch can be expensive,” said Naik. “And we (cricket clubs and leagues) are still in a recreational weekend format.”

These ideas are still being floated, and he insists that they will be used only in 20/20 matches. Naik says he is not radical and whenever he has an idea that he thinks will fly he first discusses it with team captains as a sign of respect to the players and the game.

Arguably the most powerful man in Arizona cricket, Naik, who has held many official positions, and his partner Vivek Govakar recently began the Arizona Premier League (APL), which is based on the success of the Indian Professional League.

It is a five team competition played over seven weeks, including the semi finals and final.

“The idea is to make cricket in Arizona more exciting,” he said in an interview with cricketusamag.com.

Naik, who is the Commissioner of the APL, and Govakar set up the league when they thought that if the  format worked successfully in India then why wouldn’t it work in the US.

 The APL is run like a franchise where local businessmen paid $750 to $800 to own a team. When ownership was established 150 players were invited to register with the APL and owners were allowed to choose 16 players each to form a squad. “It was very successful,” said Naik. “We raised about $4,000 in one hour.”

The games are played under lights and the 20/20 format from 6.30 PM to 10.30 PM and the competition has become very successful even though it is in the early stages.

Players wear colored uniforms as an added attraction and other states have already contacted Naik to form similar competitions.

“The goal is to have players paid next year,” said Naik, who added the APL was a non-profit league and its administration gave back the money owners paid for their teams on the condition they used it to the benefit of the team and the game like buying rollers and equipment.

“I’m a man with ideas who has a tremendous passion for cricket,” he said. “I like new ideas and I lose sleep if I can’t use them.”

Naik’s door is always open to ideas and suggestions that will help the game. He is always looking for an edge that will make the difference.

Since he moved to the US in 1996 from Pune, which is about one hour away from Mumbai in India, he has been involved in cricket from the early days of playing with a group of 20 friends using a tennis ball in Phoenix parks.

During the tennis ball days he came across the Arizona Cricket Association and formed the Metrostars Cricket Club to play in the competition. He is captain of the team and is an all rounder as well as founder and president.

He got involved in the administration side of the association and has proudly watched it grow from an eight team competition to a healthy 20 clubs. Over the years Naik has held honorary positions as Fixture Secretary, Purchase Manager, Vice Chairman and Youth Cricket Co-ordinator, which prepared him for bigger roles.

Now he is chairman of the Arizona Cricket Association, which plays its season from October to April because summer’s intense heat is too hot to play during the day.

There was a gap from May to September and he wanted to find a way to play cricket so in 2002 he started the Metrostars Summer Cricket Tournament, which is now played on Friday, Saturday and Sundays from 6.30 PM to 10.30 PM under lights at four different fields.

The 20/20 competition began with four teams and has now grown to 16, and all clubs are from the Arizona Cricket Association.

“A lot of people want to play at night and they still have enough time to enjoy the weekend,” said Naik.

“The teams wear colored uniforms, there is a family atmosphere with food and beverage stalls at the grounds. It works. Last year’s final had 200 people and this year we expect about 400. If you can play baseball at night then why not cricket.”

The winning team takes home the AZ2020 Cup.

There were a few bumps in the road at the beginning of the night competition because city officials were reluctant to give permission for rollers to be used. They feared it would harden the fields and affect baseball and soccer games.

Now, says Naik, rollers are permitted to be used and everyone is happy. The games are played on turf, Astro turf and matting wickets.

Naik has a busy schedule, but he is not done yet. There are plenty of ideas out there and he is willing to listen to them to help cricket flourish and appeal to Americans.

 He has come a long way since he began playing the game with a tennis ball in Phoenix.

USA Cricket, Women’s Style

June 4, 5 and 6 saw three days of beautiful weather and enthusiastic women as the 2010 USA National Women’s Cricket Tournament took place at the Cupertino Library ground in California.  Five teams of female players from around the country converged in the San Francisco bay area to compete for the National Championship.  They represented many walks of life from the east, central and west parts of the USA.  And they ranged in age from high schoolers to grandmothers!  But all had one common goal – to play the best cricket they could.

Each team played two matches over the three days.  The North East team stood out and took the top honors.  But the other four teams had respectable showings and it came down to net run rate for determining the Runners-Up.  This went to the local team, Western Firebirds as they held off the New York team for just enough overs to pass them in the ratings.

“This was a fantastic tournament for the USA Cricket Association as we hosted some great players who showed us their best.  From this pool of women, we are selecting the players who will represent the USA in Canada next month during the ICC Americas World Cup Qualifier Tournament” states Raj Padhi who is the USACA Director for the Western Region.  “We couldn’t have asked for a better time with these ladies really going at it, showing us they can be fierce competitors while, at the same time, forming great friendships across team boundaries.”

Out of the 60 plus players, Indomatie Goordial-John of the North East team stood out with her heavy hitting, especially in the first match.  Racking up 95 runs as well as taking one wicket during that match against the Western Chargers, her effort was the base for a 281 score in their 40 overs which the Chargers could not overcome in the second inning.

Western Firebirds

Doris Francis of the New York team was one of the outstanding bowlers who gave only 10 runs in 8 overs while taking 3 wickets in the match against the Western Firebirds.  During the match with the Western Chargers, Gul Imran from the Atlantic team also showed great bowling capabilities by not only grabbing 2 wickets in 8 overs with only 10 runs given but also taking catches to get 3 batters out.  And in fielding, Erica Rendler of the Western Firebirds showed off her softball background, moving fast on the outfield, collecting the balls cleanly and throwing them back in a flash.

The women were definitely fired up and are excited to see who among them will be selected to be part of Team USA.  Those top players will travel to Canada for that ICC Qualifier tournament which starts July 12.  And all are looking forward to future tournaments in the USA.  “I am looking forward to be back next year to participate in your forthcoming tournaments” states Ivy Mahabir, captain of the Atlantic team.

As women around the country see this kind of action in the USA, it is bound to encourage more to participate.  So next year’s tournament will very likely see more teams participating and more enthusiastic play.

Here is a summary of this tournament’s results:

Five teams participated:  Atlantic, New York, North East, Western Chargers, Western Firebirds

Player of the Match Awards – one for each of the five matches:
     Match 1 – Indomatie Goordial-John, North East (75 runs; 1 wicket)
     Match 2 – Durga Das, Western Firebirds (29 runs)
     Match 3 – Shondell Ward, North East (8 overs for 8 runs)
     Match 4 – Doris Francis, New York (8 run; 3 wickets, 10 runs in 8 overs)
     Match 5 – Gul Imran, Atlantic (11 Not out; 3 catches; 2 wickets, 10 runs in 8 overs)

Best Fielder of the Tournament: Erica Rendler, Firebirds
Best Wicket Keeper of the Tournament: Catherine Crowe, New York
Best Bowler of the Tournament: Beulah Pidakala, Atlantic
Best Batter of the Tournament: Indomatie Goordial-John, North East
Most Valuable Player of the Tournament: Indomatie Goordial-John, North East

Champions: North East
Runners-up: Western Firebirds
Third place: New York
Fourth place: Atlantic
Fifth place: Western Chargers

==========
Submitted by Daun Jacobsen

Maq T20 Lauderhill International Night Cricket – Finals

Cricket Council USA (CCUSA), a sports and entertainment management company and the City of Lauderhill cordially invites you and your family to the finals of the 8th Annual MAQ T20 Lauderhill International Night Cricket Tournament to be play Saturday, June 5, 2010 – 7PM – 10:30pm.  You and your family presence will be most welcome by the participating players, coaches, tournament officials and other business and government leaders.  Through the endorsement of the South Florida Cricket Alliance and Florida Southeast Cricket League, the MAQ T20 Lauderhill International Night Cricket Tournament has achieved the reputation as one of America’s largest and most-popular night cricket tournaments. 
 
This year’s tournament, underwritten by Cricket Council USA and the City of Lauderhill, proved to be a 13 week season of FIRSTS!!  For the first time, the field included entries for Team USA  and Team World XI!  And for the first time, the Team Lauderhill has reached the Finals — remarkably, against the rookie Team USA! 
 
After the game, Mayor Kaplan and Mohammad A. Qureshi will award the Champion Team with the Mayor’s Cup and the First Prize check. In addition, awards will be given to the tournament’s outstanding players.  Bring the family out for great food, music and amazing cricket!!! The finals will be play at the Lauderhill Sports Park – 7500 W. Oakland Park Blvd, Lauderhill, Fl.
 
GET READY, SOUTH FLORIDA !!        

HERE COMES THE FINALS !!

June 5, 2010                            

  Lauderhill Sports Park
 
For more information, call CCUSA at 561-361-1700 or visit www.cricketcouncilusa.com

USYCA is pleased to announce the addition of our sixteenth affiliate

Today, the USYCA is pleased to announce the addition of our sixteenth affiliate, the North Texas Youth Cricket Association (NTYCA) which will operate under its parent organization, the North Texas Cricket Association (NTCA).

Jay Shah will be the NTYCA program director and will oversee the operation of NTYCA.  Originally from Ahmedabad, India, where Jay played cricket at the School and University level, he settled in Dallas in 2004 and have been associated with NTCA administration since 2005.  He served as a NTCA Scheduling Committee Chair in 2006 to 2008.  He is serving as the NTCA General Secretary since 2009.  He is the youngest executive of NTCA’s executive committee.

The main vision of NTYCA along with United States Youth Cricket Association (USYCA) is to grow and nurture the young talent and spread the game of cricket.  One of the longer term goals of NTYCA is to set up Youth Cricket Academy.

USA streamroll over Argentina thanks to Thyagarajan century

USA began their campaign in the ICC World Cricket League Americas Region, Division One, with a facile win over Argentina. The 119 run victory was brought about thanks to Orlando Baker’s dogged innings of 113 and a 119-ball 159 by Aditya Thyagarajan that shut Argentina out of the game.

Argentina chose to field at the St. George’s Cricket Club in Bermuda, but early success eluded them as Sushil Nadkarni and Baker added 49 for the first wicket. Nadkarni and captain Steve Massiah left in quick succession and despite some smashing shots from Baker, Carl Wright and Lennox Cush, both scored only nine between them to reduce USA to 91/4 and in a bit of strife.

This is where Thyagarajan joined Baker and the pair took the opposition bowling to sword. The pair added 213 runs, and by the time Aditya was dismissed for his well-scored century, USA had already surpassed 300.

Rashard Marshall smote a few in the end, to propel USA forward to 347/6 in their fifty overs and set an imposing total for the Argentines.

With shoulders dropping, it was only Grant Dugmore’s 64 that thwarted USA to an extent, but the rest of the batting just collapsed away under some sustained pressure by Adrian Gordon who scalped a 4/38 in his eight overs.

Gary Savage and Donald Forrester, both scored 30s, but Argentina managed only 228/9 in their fifty overs. Thyagarajan won the man of the match award for his massive century.

ICC Cricket Committee concludes two-day meeting at Lord’s

Committee recommends implementation of Decision Review System (DRS) in ICC Cricket World Cup2011 Support for promotion and context for international cricket as well as further research into floodlit Test matches International run rates and over rates improving ICC Cricket Committee, chaired by Clive Lloyd, held their annual meeting at Lord’s Cricket Ground in London on 20/21 May 2010.
Among the recommendations were:
                     
Decision Review System:
The DRS workshop held with major stakeholders, broadcasters and technology providers in Dubai in March led to 14 recommendations being placed before the ICC Cricket Committee. After a lengthy and constructive discussion the ICC Cricket Committee suggested that the principle should be that DRS should be introduced as soon as possible in all Test series

The ICC Cricket Committee also recommends that DRS, subject to agreement with ICC broadcaster partners ESPN Star Sports, should be used in all matches in the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 in India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. As in Test cricket each team will be allowed two referrals per innings. It was also recommended that further consideration should be given to using DRS in ODI cricket after the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011.

The ICC Cricket Committee were also in agreement that a minimum standard of technology such as ball tracking technology, including in the third umpire room, should be introduced as well as annual reviews of technology and equipment. It was also recommended that a playing condition should be introduced that an umpire could check the legitimacy of a delivery in the case of a dismissal in all circumstances where he was uncertain as to the fairness of the delivery. It was also agreed that reviews would only be restored for technological failure rather than an inclusive outcome and that all reviews should be requested within a 15 second time frame.
Context for International Cricket.

The ICC Cricket Committee supported, in principle, proposals for a Test play off every four years and a proposed league format for ODI cricket as well as research into a reduction in the number of teams in the ICC Cricket World Cup and more countries competing in the ICC World Twenty20. There was also serious consideration of the format for One Day Cricket and further discussions will take place after the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 after the results of various trials conducted in domestic cricket are available.

 Floodlit Test match cricket:

The ICC thanked the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC)  and Cricket Australia (CA) for their research into coloured balls which could be used in day night cricket and now ICC will play an even more pro-active role in the development of a ball which could be used under floodlights. ICC will commission research into the ideal colour for balls to be used in day-night cricket and then work closely with the equipment manufacturers before conducting relevant trials.

The Cricket Committee also noted that there would also have to be further discussions on the matters of clothing colours, the number of overs bowled before a ball change and the start times required for day-night test matches.
Research into international cricket David Kendix reviewed data supplied on run rates and over rates as well as the volume of cricket. The research by Mr Kendix revealed that while the average of volume of cricket for teams was stable that the number of days the top 20 players were engaged in had fallen by 10 per cent. The proportion of Test draws had fallen to 22.5 in 2009 and of the Tests with a positive result the average duration of 4.45 days.

Over rates in both Test and ODI cricket have improved from 13.78 per hour in Test matches to 14.05in the last two years while there was a greater rise from 13.57 per hour to 14.38 in ODI cricket. Run rates in Test cricket in 2009/10 was 3.3 per over while in the 1990s it was 2.87 per over. In ODI cricket the average run rate was 5.19 per over compared with an average of 4.97 in the previous five years.

Switch hit/Reverse sweep

Following a discussion on the switch hit/reverse sweep, the ICC Cricket Committee adopted the updated directive introduced earlier in the year which prevents the batsman from altering his grip or stance before the bowler enters his delivery stride. Should the bowler see a batsman change his grip or stance prior to the delivery stride the bowler can decide not to bowl the ball.

Batsman seeking to gain an unfair advantage:

ICC Cricket Committee agreed that batsmen trying to steal ground when the bowler is running in to bowl should be discouraged. They will look at regulations that require a batsman to remain in his crease until the bowler’s front foot lands.

ICC Cricket Committee Clive Lloyd said: ‘The ICC Cricket Committee reflects the views of the game’s most important constituencies from players to coaches to administrators to umpires to match referees to the media, statisticians, broadcasters and lawmakers. Their opinions are important to the continued well-being of the great game of cricket. The high standard of debate and the passion showed by the committee reflected how seriously the committee takes its role.

‘At this meeting at Lord’s we  had a wide ranging debate on everything from the DRS to the laws of the game as well as discussing the context of Test and ODI cricket and receiving reports from the ICC Women’s and ICC Medical Committees as well as ICC playing conditions.
The ICC Cricket Committee comprises:
 
Clive Lloyd ( Chairman)
David Morgan (ICC President – ex officio)
Haroon Lorgat (ICC Chief Executive- ex officio)
Tim May
Gary Kirsten
Justin Vaughan
Simon Taufel
Ranjan Madugalle
Keith Bradshaw
Clare Connor
David Kendix
Ravi Shastri
Steve Tikolo
Apologies
Ian Bishop
Mark Taylor
Kumar Sangakkara

US senior team needs win to boost its confidence, says coach Lambert

Someone once said that a win can cure all aches and pains in any sports team. The United States senior cricket team is one combination that is desperate for a victory.
The US team had high hopes to take the next step when Don Lockerbie was appointed CEO of the United States Cricket Association last year.
He came highly credentialed with a long list of success at national and international level, including Olympic Games and the World Cup in soccer.
Lockerbie hit the ground running, but the country had entered a severe and very long financial recession and corporate money wasn’t around as USACA sought sponsors and donors to help the game improve its fields and facilities.
It wasn’t supposed to happen this way.
It seemed the time had arrived for US cricket to advance. For too long the game was going nowhere. The future looked grim.
The players were impatient and anxious to move upward and play against the best in the world and see just how good they could perform against the likes of India, Australia, England, Pakistan, South Africa, New Zealand, Sri Lanka and the West indies.
Well, things haven’t advanced as much as most had hoped.
The US senior team is now preparing for the Americas Cup later this month and then the International Cricket Conference Division Four tournament in August in Italy under coach Clayton Lambert, who played in seven Tests with the West indies before he moved to the US 12 years ago and played with the McNair Lions in the Georgia Cricket League.
“We have to win,” said Lambert in an interview with cricketusamag.com. “We have to win every tournament we play in to qualify. There are is no room for mistakes. Now is the future.”
Lambert and the team are embarking on long range plans for the US to qualify for the 2015 World Cup, which right now seems like light years away.
But he is an optimist, a realist and patient.
He knows that the lack of money has hurt the US team. For openers, there is no training camp, the US squad does not practice together anywhere near as the rest of the top playing nations and the facilities are not up to international playing standard.
One of the main problems is that some players have to adjust from playing on matting to turf pitches. Batsmen have a history of changing surfaces a lot easier than bowlers.
Lambert would like the squad together more often so players could work together in the nets and form an even better camaraderie. All the players have day jobs and some have difficulties to get time off to represent the US.
“I think the foundation of a good side for the future is there,” said Lambert. “There are guys in there low 30s and younger and if we start to win now we can gradually build on it.
“The team has been getting younger. We have experience and youth to learn from.”
Lambert believes the team is nicely balanced with a lot of versatile players.
Now all USACA needs is a change in the financial status where Lockerbie can generate sponsorship and big donors from corporations to help improve facilities and the game can begin to move forward.
Lambert thinks it will eventually come. He said: “I’m sure the funding will be there soon.”

Until then a win will make all the difference.

Pearls Cup: Inaugural US Cricket Event, New Zealand vs. Sri Lanka Series, Re-Shaped

Michael Henstock, International Media Manager NZC

USA +305 778 9269, NZ +64 21 2462833

Justin Vaughan

Chief Executive Officer, New Zealand Cricket

Mobile: +21 226582

Donald Lockerbie

Chief Executive Officer, USA Cricket Association

T: +1.305.537.3764, Mobile: +1.305.335.7172

Addition of the Virginia Youth Cricket Association to the USYCA family, led by Siva Narapareddy.

Today we have the pleasure to announce the addition of the Virginia Youth Cricket Association to the USYCA family, led by Siva Narapareddy.
Siva has been playing in the Washington Cricket League since 1998. He is also the founder and proud owner of two different DC Chargers cricket teams, each of which plays in the Washington Metro Cricket League (http://www.wmcl.net) and Loudoun League (http://www.lccl.us), as well as the Falcons Cricket Club and the Loudoun Cougars U-19 team. A member of the Advisory Panel for the WMCL, Siva is also on the sports committee of the Capitol Area Telugu Society, for which he conducted a six-a-side tournament. Siva did similar work for the Washington CRY organization.
It is said that if you want something done, give it to a busy man. Siva has certainly kept himself busy with cricket, and we are grateful to have him on the team.

 Jamie Harrison, Interim President
United States Youth Cricket Association
http://usyouthcricket.org
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=108767069163260

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