By Josphine DSilva
aTP- Arab tourism portal News-DUBAI- The UAE is hosting the10th edition of the World Indoor Cricket tournament that is being staged for the first time in the Middle East in its 22-year history.
Former India cricket star, Sandeep Patil who is also the brand ambassador of this year’s championship hopes that in future, the tournament gets recognition from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) the national governing body for cricket in India.
Patil made the remarks at a well attended press conference held in Dubai on Saturday hosted by Petromann Events and Danube Group, who jointly also commemorated The World Indoor Cricket Team.
During the colourful reception the team India jersey was unveiled along with the Blue Anthem.
Speaking at the same function, Anis Sajan, the managing director of Danube Group, who groomed one of the strongest indoor cricket teams in the UAE, and the mentor of the India indoor team said he has personally involved and done a lot to enrich the domestic structure in the UAE by encouraging many talented cricketers and providing many players with excellent facilities to improve.
This year’s ongoing edition at InSportz Club is witnessing over 400 plus players with hosts UAE, Singapore, Malaysia, India, Sri Lanka, England, New Zealand, South Africa and nine times champion Australia, who have won every global title, vie for glory in the men’s, women’s, Under-21 men’s and U-21 women’s categories between September 16-23.
The weeklong tournament which comes to an end on 23rd September, is being held in partnership with Cricket Australia (CA) and Emirates Cricket Board (ECB).
The Indian team is managed and operated by the XLR8 India, an indoor arena in Bengaluru. The India Indoor Sports Federation, has mandated XLR8 to select, train and prepare Indian cricket teams for all indoor tournaments.
Though the World Indoor Cricket Federation is not as high-profile as the ICC World Cup however, there is a growing interest in this indoor sporting event.
Played inside nets and with different format of scoring runs in a 16-over-a-side match, the fast-paced action game appeals to both the players and spectators alike.
Indoor cricket which has become popular is a very competitive sport with a lot of international competitions happening now.
