| The
inaugural under-14 cricket tournament for the Nelson Mendis Trophy
An investment for the future
By Bilal Yusuf
The inaugural under-14 cricket tournament for the
"Nelson Mendis Trophy", kicks off tomorrow at CCC grounds,
Maitland Crescent. The Sunday Times Spoke to Nelson Mendis the head
coach of the Colombo Cricket Club School of Cricket about the organization
of this tournament.
Q:
How did the idea to stage this tournament really come up, and what
is the reason for staging a tournament of this nature?
Actually how this came about was when the CCC junior team
toured India last year and year before and participated in a junior
tournament in Bangalore. When we were returning after the tournament
a few keen and devoted parents who also traveled with the team asked
me, why can't we also organize a tournament like this in Sri Lanka?
So, when we came back we spoke to the parents regarding this idea
and they were all for it, so we decided to stage the tournament
this year and have been planning for this event from July. So it
could be said that the idea really came from the parents.
Q:
What are the main objectives of this tournament?
The main reason for us to organize this tournament is
to try and give maximum exposure to the players from various academies
and coaching schools in Sri Lanka. These Schools have been in existence
for the last ten years but not a single tournament been organized
to give the youngsters any opportunity to show their mettle, so
it was our intention to try and give these players as many opportunities
as possible to display their skills. Another problem faced is that
many of these academies do not have the facilities and financial
backing like our schools to participate in tournaments abroad. So
we also thought that this would also give the youngsters a chance
not only to play against foreign teams but also to get the opportunity
to interact with players from foreign countries.
Q:
Could you tell us about the foreign teams that will be participating
in this tournament?
There will be five foreign teams that will be playing
in this tournament. Imthiaz Ahmed a former state player who represented
Karnateka and also the Indian youth team, coaches the Imthiaz Ahmed
Cricket academy, then there is Anton Siovin a cricket promoter in
Bangalore who will be bringing down a combined Schools team from
Bangalore, the next team is Jane International Cricket School which
I would rate as one of the best sports institutions in Asia, we
then have a team coming down called Emirates Maybury Training Cricket
Academy which will be brought down by Kenneth Barenger an enthusiastic
cricket promoter in Sharjah who also happens to be Sri Lankan. The
fifth foreign team will be the Pacific West Cricket Club, Malaysia,
who will be managed by R. Suppiah. I must also mention S.Segeran,
for helping to bring this team down from Malaysia.
Q:
How difficult has it been for the organizers to bring the twenty-four
teams together, and what sort of financial backing have the organizers
received for the tournament?
I must say that if not for the hard work and dedication
of my committee, this tournament would not have been possible. We
have been preparing for this tournament for the last five months,
which would have consisted of about thirty meetings, and I must
thank the parents for their corporation and support to help organize
this tournament. I must also thank the sponsors in Ceylon Cold Stores,
Odel, Access, Sumathis Sports, Lal Kumarasiri of Moratuwa Saw Mills
and Singer who helped us financially.
Q:
Mr. Mendis can you tell us something about your coaching career?
This is my 43rd year as a Coach. As a player I played
for Dharmasoka College, Ambalangoda and went on to captain the college
team, I also played for the Southern Province combined schools team.
At club level I played for Old Sokians S.C, Bloomfield, Badulla
Cricket Club and I also represented the Education Department and
then joined Singer and played for them as well. I coached the Parak
Cricket Club in Malaysia, the combined forces team in Malaysia and
in 2002 coached the Malaysian under-15 national team. In Sri Lanka
I coached the Nalanda team from junior to senior level, my stint
at Nalanda was a very successful one, I also coached Lyceum International.
I also had the honour of coaching over a dozen cricketers who represented
Sri Lanka in: Bandula Warnapura, Lalith Kaluperuma, Anura Ranasinghe,
Yohan Gunasekera, Hemantha Devapriya, Gamini Wickremasinghe, Roshan
Mahanama, Asanka Gurusinghe, Kumara Dharmasena, Chamara Dunusinghe,
Hashan Thilekeratne and Pubudu Dassanayake. In 1998 I was invited
to coach the juniors in CCC. As a coach of one area, which I have
always stressed on, is discipline, and the motto of CCC School of
cricket is "Disciplined are the noblest of men". I am
a firm believer that discipline is the key to be successful in any
aspect of life.
Q:
How do you see the current standard of junior cricket in Sri Lanka?
I think that the standard of junior cricket is one of
the best in the world. The players in Sri Lanka are naturally gifted
and have many advantages such as supple wrist, good eyesight and
quick reactions. I also think that the standard of coaching is at
a very high level in Sri Lanka, and a special word of mention must
go to "Sri Lanka Cricket" for doing their best to maintain
these standards.
Q:
Do the organizers hope to make this tournament an annual event?
Yes, that is our intention. Several companies who are
willing individually to sponsor the tournament next year have already
approached us, so we are definitely looking at making this tournament
an annual event. |
