The Botswana Cricket Association (BCA) oval was a hive of activity this week as 30 young cricketers thronged the place for a high performance camp. The youngsters, who are part of the Botswana national under 13 cricket team, did their week long camp under the watchful eyes of the BCA’s junior team coaches. The young cricketers were drilled on the specialist skills of batting and fielding. Apart from practical tests, it is said that the youngsters had an opportunity to dwell in the discipline classes if they are to become top athletes in the sport.
While the boys are coming from across the country with different backgrounds it has been revealed that video sessions are part of the camp to bring all players into the same page. A press statement has said ‘’the boys are coming from different regions and we had arranged video sessions to bring them to speed as most of them do not have facilities at home. We are engaging them in theory and practical lessons on how to be a good cricket player and the discipline involved to get to the top,” revealed the statement.
The weeklong camp that ended yesterday commenced on Monday and it was said that the boys were selected from the junior tournament that was held in April at the BCA oval. Speaking to Sunday Standard sport this week, BCA Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Girish Ramakrishna said there is a lot of talent with concern to cricket in the country which can only be useful if scouted and nurtured accordingly.
‘’We have realised there are a lot of children involved in cricket so theses young players were selected at the national championships and we decided to choose the best for a national camp that will assist in their growth for the sport. A lot has been learnt by these youngsters at the camp as there are a lot of coaches drilling them through the series with different approach to the game,” said Ramakrishna.
He cited that grassroots is critical as players grow into being national team players in future. ‘’In no time these youngsters will make part of the national team so it is crucial that we nurture them into responsible athletes that can represent the country with dignity in future. We also had the same program for the under 15 national side a few weeks ago which will guide them as they age to the senior level,” Ramakishna told Sunday Standard sport.
However, he cited that lack of sponsorship continue to hinder their efforts to scout talent. ‘’There is great need for sponsorship that will assist us in nurturing talent to the fullest but we believe the association is on track in terms of development,” concluded Ramakrishna.
