The Weekend Ahead

I am toddling off to Tasmania tomorrow for a weekend away, so this will be my last post for a couple of days (not that Tasmania don't have the internet, I will just be on holiday).

There is a bit of cricket ahead involving Kenyans, so here goes:

- Terry Jenner's Spin Clinic should wrap up today in Nairobi. Hopefully we shall see a press release from Cricket Kenya on its success, and how our youngsters found the experience.

- Nakuru will see Akshar A back in action as they take on Eldoret in a match that should provide the league winner of the Akshar Tournament. There are still a lot of games to go, but these two teams are looking significantly stronger than the opposition so far. Akshar will probably go into the match as favourites, though they have had less cricket than Eldoret, so we shall see.

- In England, James Clegg will lead Fairburn against Gawthorpe St Mary's CC in the Leeds West Riding League, lets hope he can keep up his good from so far.

- Also in England, Hitesh Modi is listed in the starting line-up for Chesham in their Thames Valley League match against Thatcham Town. Hopefully that means the news on his finger is good, and he will indeed be back in action. All the best to him for a succcessful return.

- Amit Bhudia's Danish side Herning have two league matches this weekend. On Saturday they play Albertslund who have so far lost the only match they have played, so hopefully Herning can continue this trend. Backing it up on Sunday, they take on KB II who have won one and lost one. Herning won their only league game last week helped by an unbeated 30 from Amit, so here's hoping he gets amoung the runs again this weekend.

- No news from the NPCA or CCA. It may well be that there is cricket going on in either Nairobi or Mombasa, quite possibly both, so if anyone wants to let this little mushroom know what is going on, that would be great.

- Internationally, there is the final of the Tri-series in Trinidad with Bermuda taking on Zimbabwe. They got belted yesterday, so will need to produce a much better effort if they are going to save face on Saturday.

- Namibia too face an uphill struggle in their Intercontinental match against Ireland. Dismised for a paltry 95 in their first innings, they are struggling with the ball too - Ireland are 3-78 in reply. Rain may still have a part to play in all this, but the Africans will be hard pushed to avoid a thumping defeat.

Avagoodweegend!

Test Status and The Intercontinental Cup

With the Intercontinental Cup well under way, and Zimbabwe looking less and less likely to be able to raise their standard enough to play Tests again next year, this seemed like a suitable topic for my first post on Caught Behind.
Should Zimbabwe decide not to return to Test cricket, or should the ICC decide not to readmit them, there will be a sizeable block left empty in the FTP. While some people will see this as a good thing and want to keep only nine teams playing at the top level, it will be a perfect opportunity for the ICC to bridge the current gap between the Test nations and the Associates.
Test cricket works well with ten teams playing. It gives the newer teams a chance to improve by playing against the best, and the big clashes are far enough apart that they create great anticipation. Currently, there is no avenue for the Associates to rise above the level of the Intercontinental Cup, just as there is no provision for a team to be dropped from Test cricket, no matter how low their standards fall. If the ICC were to open this last place on the FTP up to the best Associate (include Zimbabwe, as they are no longer playing Tests), it would effectively cover both shortcomings in the system.
My proposal is as follows: Every second year, the top placed team in the Intercontinental Cup be given the chance to play off against the bottom placed Test team for their slot on the FTP. Next year, this would be between Zimbabwe and the IC winner. The matches would be hosted by the Test team and would count as full Tests. The winner would earn the right to be part of the FTP for a period of 2 years. At the end of that period, the bottom ranked Test team would again have to play off against the top ranked Associate, as decided by the Intercontinental Cup.
This system would do two important things. First, it would put in place the final bridge between the Associates and Full members. To cross it, the Associates will have to prove they are at a high enough standard, but the opportunity is none the less there. It would allow Associates to aspire to Test status without watering down the quality of Test cricket played.
Second, it would act as a quality control for Test cricket - if a team's standards fall too low, they will be beaten by an upcoming team, and have to go back to basics in the Intercontinental Cup. It may mean that at some stage in the future, a traditional cricketing team loses out on Test status for a while, but should they really keep it if there are non-Test teams who play at a higher standard? Surely not.
There are practical considerations that would need to be taken into account for this to work - pitch quality for one, but the money and means are available to the ICC to assist in this. It is high time that quality is allowed the chance to shine in cricket wherever it comes from. No longer is cricket just a game for the Test nations, and the structure needs to be reworked to take that into account. The opportunity seems to have come about for just such a step.

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Cross Posted on Caught Behind.

Bermuda Add To Canada's Woes

For the second time in two outings, Canada's top order failed dismally. On Tuesday, the team was skittled for 75 in their huge loss to Zimbabwe. Yesterday, they did slightly better against a team most expected them to beat. It was only a rear guard action by a bowler, Codrington, that brought them respectability however, and they finished on 9-157. Bermuda were set a reduced target using the duckworth-Lewis system, and reached it with 3 wickets in hand off the last ball. In the end it was a close match, and it remains to be seen how Bermuda will fare against Zimbabwe, but for Canada it was still another loss. Kenya will be playing both Canada and Bermuda in July and August, and if these results are anything to go by, we will go in as strong favourites. That should not mean however that training should be slacked off, but rather the opposite. We need to find a ruthless streak, and record big victories against the other Associates when we get the chance. It is therefore heartening to hear that Cricket Kenya will soon be announcing a provisional squad for not only the World Cup, but that they will be starting continuous training very soon. This squad will form the backbone of the teams to Canada and must be in top shape to take advantage of their weakness.

Caught Behind SuperBlg Set To Launch

As some of you may know, Caught Behind have set up a Super Blog incorporating posts from some of the best cricket bloggers around - one representing each country. Due to there only being me blogging about Kenyan cricket, I get a place in the 'First XI' next to some very respected voices.

It is a great idea, and should be a very successful venture. Thanks to those who were kind enough to recognise that Kenya cricket matters enough to be included. The blog is set to launch Thursday 18th at midnight - Let play commence!

Fixture List Updated

Following the recent press release from Cricket Kenya, I have made the following changes to the fixture list:

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- Kenya tour to Uganda in May removed.

- Atul Shah Memorial Tournament in Mombasa included.

- Uganda tour to Kenya in September 2006 included.

- Under 15's Regional Tournament in August included.

- African Regional Women's World Cup Qualifiers in December 2006 included.

- Proposed tour by MCC in February 2007 included.

As far as I know, it now reflects the current calendar. I will include details and confirmed dates as soon as they become available.

More Cricket in Kenyan Press

The last few days have seen an upsurge in the amount of cricket being covered by the Kenyan on-line media. Both the Standard and Nation yesterday carried stories about cricket, and Kenya's fixtures in the year ahead. Today, the nation ran a good article on the Terry Jenner Spin Clinic, while the Standard focussed attention on Kenya's matches in the build up to next year's World Cup.

It is heartening to see this interest in the media, even if it has only come about because of a press release from Cricket Kenya detailing the schedule for the upcoming year. What would be nice to see now is the provincial bodies following suit to promote the game, and journalists actively pursuing stories rather than having to be fed.

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Promoting cricket has to work both ways. The authorities will need to keep the media informed of developments as they occur, but in turn the media need to do their part in this as well. Take reporting on the domestic game. The provincial body, say NPCA for example, need to put out an official press release giving the complete results after a day's/weekend's play. A good reporter will have been to at least a couple of the matches and will be able to write an interesting article based around what he/she saw, and complement it with the press release. A not-so-good reporter will simply sit at home, wait for the press release and write his report around that alone. I am a not-so-good reporter. I have no opportunity to go to the ground as I am on the other side of the World. There are no such excuses for those reporting on the game in Kenya.

All the facilities for good coverage of Kenyan cricket are there. We may be a Third World country, but everyone has access to a phone/fax/email. There is no good reason why results cannot be made public and interest in the game cultivated. This week has definitely seen some progress in the right direction, but we must continue to work hard to ensure that the ball keeps rolling. There is a long way to go yet.

Good Progress Being Made by Spinners

Reports in today's Daily Nation Online say that Collins Obuya is expected to be back at his best form before too long. Terry Jenner is said to be happy with the leg spinner's improvement, and that is very good news for the Kenyan all-rounder. He has had a tough time with the ball over the last couple of years, and it will be very useful for Kenya if he can regain his former edge.
Obuya has been practicing hard the last six months at the Aga Khan Sports Centre where the clinic is being held, but has taken a while to be happy with his grip. If the reports are to be believed, he now has that under control and is concentrating on perfecting his action.
The three other Kenyan youngsters at the camp are Rakeb Patel, an under 17s player from Nairobi Gymkhana, his 22 year-old club mate Hiren Varaiya, and Coast Gymkhana's Stewart Kayne. Both Patel and Varaiya have just returned from a three month trip to Bombay where they attended a spin course at the Payyade Sports Club and Cricket Club of India. It is great to see youngsters like this being given such a wonderful chance. They will no doubt all be in consideration for the quadrangular tournament coming up, so will have plenty of opportunity to put what they have learned into practice.

There is a full list of players attending the course in the Nation article entitled 'Obuya's recovery on track'.

Atul Shah Memorial Tournament To Be Quadrangular

A Coast Cricket Association team will make up the fourth team in the tournament scheduled for early June meaning that each team will get an extra match, and none will have to sit out while the others are playing. A great idea this - it should mean the make up of the Kenyan teams will effectively be a Nairobi XI and Coast XI - now that should be a match to spawn a great rivalry. Coast players for ages have claimed they are as good as their Nairobi counterparts, this will give them the opportunity to prove it. Excellent stuff!

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The tournament is being held in Mombasa in honour of Atul Shah who sadly died there last November. Samir Inamdar, Atul's son-in-law writes:

"His family decided to do something to promote cricket in his name and since he died in Mombasa, we all thought thats the best we can do.

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Atul was a good wicketkeeper in his day and played predominantly against East African opposition, so it is fitting that it is an East African thing."

Each team will play the others once, then a points tally will determine the teams that play off in the final, and for third and fourth place. This guarantees each team 4 games on turf wickets. A real bonus, especially for the players from Uganda and Tanzania. Matches will be played at the Mombasa Sports Club and Coast Gymkhana with the final at MSC.

The schedule for the tournament is as follows:

Tue 6th June - Teams arrive in Mombasa
Wed 7 June - Day 1 matches
Thurs 8th June - Day 2 matches
Fri 9th June - Rest day
Sat 10th June - Day 3 matches
Sun 11th June - Finals and Plate event.
Mon 12th June - Teams depart

Thanks to Samir Inamdar for the extra information.

Kenya 'A' To Play Tanzania and Uganda

Latest reports from Cricket Kenya confirm that a triangular tournament has been scheduled for early June in Mombasa between Kenya 'A', Uganda and Tanzania. The event is being sponsored by the family of the late Atul Shah who played for Uganda National Team in the 60's, a truly generous gesture from them! The exact dates for the matches are yet to be released, but it will run from June 6th to 12th. At a guess, this would leave time for one round robin stage followed by a final, though if things are squeezed in, it would be possible for each team to play the other twice.

Kenya 'A' will probably start the favourites for this tournament as there are a number of players on the fringes of the national team who may well be given a chance to prove their worth. For Kenya's youngsters, it will be a chance to put their case forward before the A team tour to Denmark later on in the month, and maybe even get a spot in the national team.

Kenya will not have this event all their own way however as Uganda are spoiling for revenge after the last time the teams met, and have some real quality players beginning to come through their youth ranks. Tanzania will probably find the going tough, but it will be great experience for them in preparation for the 2011 World Cup Qualifiers Africa Division 1 in August.

Cricket Kenya To Set Up Official Website

This is great news for all fans of Kenyan cricket, and has absolutely nothing to do with my earlier article on publicising cricket in Kenya - I must just have great timing. Cricket Kenya decided on May 7th at a board meeting that the contract for designing the site and keeping it updated would go to a local company, Visergy. As yet, no word on the actual site address, but I will of course be linking to it as soon as it is set up, which I'm reliably informed will be in the near future. Obviously, we shall have to wait and see what it looks like, and no doubt there will be the odd glitch to start with, but this is a great step in the right direction. Ogilvy One, the company being used by Cricket Kenya to aid promotions are currently in the process of looking for a sponsor for the site. Now lets look forward to more coverage in the local press, and a free flow of information to the fans. I hope I am not getting too carried away here!

Players Arrive for Jenner Spin Clinic

Players from Uganda, Namibia, Botswana, Zambia and Nigeria have joined four Kenyan players in Nairobi for the Terry Jenner Spin camp that is due to run over the next four days. Of the Kenyans taking part, I can confirm that one will be Collins Obuya ( no surprises there), but as yet no official word of who the other three are.

Assisting Jenner during the camp will be Kenya coach Roger Harper and Assistant coach Alfred Njuguna. This will be a great chance for the youngsters to work with a coach of real quality, and kudos to all those involved in the organisation. It is great to see a coach of this quality putting in the time to help the developing nations. What would be even better was if we were to see a fast bowling coach and batting coach do similar tours of duty. Fingers crossed, but in the meantime, lets hope those young leggies in Nairobi get full benefit from this over the next few days.

Sheikh's Shirt on Sale!

I was just alerted to this by the Fairburn website.

Mohammed Sheikh has donated the shirt he wore in the 2000 International Cricket Council (ICC) KnockOut Tournament played in Nairobi to help raise funds for the Plan Corporate Challenge which works towards alleviating child poverty. It is being auctioned off on ebay, and you can take a look at the auctions progress and bid here. Funds from this particular event will go towards ending child poverty and providing for underprivileged communities in India. It is a great cause, and I encourage you to go there and bid generously, but not so generously that I don't get the shirt (only kidding).

Kenyans Overseas Weekly Roundup.

It has been a fairly good weekend for the Kenyan cricket connections overseas.
In England, James Clegg writes from Fairburn:

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With Fairburn CC top of the Leeds West Riding League, it was good to turn our attentions to the leagues premier cup competition, the Hepworth Cup. Our opponents were Swillington, who ply their trade in the league's 2nd Division. After a week of hot sun, I was looking forward to batting first on the usual Fairburn Flatbed, but the English weather took over, with grey clouds and constant rain.
Swillington won the toss, and decided to bat. Apart from their opener, who made it into the 30s, our bowling was just a bit too strong, skittling them for 79. The rain continued, and I went out to bat with fellow opener Ian Jones. Luckily for us, the bowling was struggling in the wet conditions, allowing us to score the required 80 in just 9.1 overs. I was particularly happy to beat my partner Jones (35*), scoring 44 not out! Next week, back to the league for a game against Gawthorpe St Mary's CC.

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Good to see James in the runs again. He now has 174 runs from 4 innings, so a good start to the season by him.

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In Denmark, Amit Bhudia had a mixed weekend caught behind after only scoring 7 in Herning's Cup defeat to Aalborg on Friday, but making up for it with an unbeaten 30 in their league victory over Svanholm II the following day. Amit did sustain a slight shoulder injury taking a diving catch, but should be back playing again this weekend when Herning take on Albertslund and KB II in the First Division. Good to see him getting some runs ahead of the Kenya A tour to Denmark, lets hope he keeps it up.

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Kenya's other player overseas, Hitesh Modi, is still waiting for his finger to heal, so missed out on Chesham's first league match against Amersham. Chesham had the better of the match finishing with 8-218, while Amersham were at 8-180 when the match was called off due to bad light and rain.

Akshar League Standings After 8 Games

TEAM.........Played...Won...Lost...Bat...Bowl...Win...Total
KERICHO......3...........2.........1........9........11......24.......44
ELDORET.....2...........2.........0.......2.........8.......24.......34
AKSHAR.B....3............1..........2.......7.........7.......12.......26
DIAMOND.....3...........1..........2.......3........10......12.......25
VOC...............3...........1..........2.......1..........8......12........21
AKSHAR.A....1............1..........0.......4.........4.......12.......20
NAIVASHA....1...........0..........1.......0.........3........0.........3

Jignesh Half Century Takes Kericho To Top Of Table

With the sun shining down on Nakuru, Kericho won the toss and decided to have a bat. Akshar B's opening bowlers Hiren and Samrat started well, swinging the ball both ways, and Kericho could only manage 17 runs off the first 10 overs. As soon as the two front line bowlers were replaced however, none of the other 5 could bowl consistently, and Kericho's batsman took full advantage of any loose and wayward deliveries. Kalpesh did get a couple of wickets, but it was not enough to stop Kericho from posting a formidable looking 203 for the loss of only 5 wickets. Jignesh became the leagues' highest scorer in an innings so far with 61 before he was run out. Lalji also did is average no harm, finishing on 36 not out.
Akshar B set out to chase the total in a strategic manner, and looked to have started well with Viral making 29 before being caught off the bowling of Akshay. Indeed it was the introduction of Akshay and Rashmi into the bowling attack that instigated a middle order collapse, and despite lower order heroics from Rakesh and Samrat, Kericho bowled their opponents out for 168 to win by 35 runs.
Kericho take maximum points from the match to go top of the table, while Akshar B move into 3rd after gaining 3 batting points, and 2 bowling points. Next week sees Eldoret, so far unbeaten, take on the might of tournament favourites Akshar A in a match that will almost certainly determine the minor premiership.

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Thanks as always to Shailesh for his timely report (hint, hint NPCA and CCA!).

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SCORECARD:

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Kericho Innings
Dilpesh...................Ct Sunil................Kaplesh.........02
Nilesh....................Run Out......................................18
Yatish....................Bowled...................Ravi..............08
Akshay...................Bowled..................Kalpesh.........13
Jignesh..................Run Out......................................61
Lalji.......................Not out........................................36
Nitesh...................Not out.........................................06
Extras.......................................................................59
Total for 5 wickets....................................................203

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Akshar B innings
Trushit................Bowled.....................Dipesh..........07
Viral....................Ct Yatush.................Akshay..........29
Marvin................Run Out........................................11
Sunil....................Bowled.....................Akshay.........00
Hiren..................Ct Yatish....................Akshay.........13
Ravi....................Bowled.......................Rashmi........11
Raju....................Bowled.......................Rashmi.......06
Rakesh................Retired Hurt..................................21
Kalpesh..............Ct Vipul......................Rashmi.......02
Samrat...............Ct Vipul......................Akshay.........27
Shailesh..............Not out..........................................02
Extras.......................................................................39
Total All Out.............................................................168

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Kericho win by 35 runs.

Publicising Kenyan Cricket

From the last I heard, the NPCA transfer window should now be open and the details of the new season should have been released. So far, not a peep from either the NPCA or the online Kenyan press about either. I am also still waiting to hear official confirmation and further details of the results of the six-a-side tournament.

Likewise nothing seems to be happening regarding cricket at the coast. It is almost as though the Three Wise Monkeys have taken over publicising the sport in Kenya - See No Cricket, Hear No Cricket and Speak No Cricket. Uganda on the other hand have regular reports in their press about the upcoming Castle League, and even about junior cricket. Our senior team may be stronger than the Ugandans at the moment, but how long will this continue if new players are not encouraged to take up the sport? How are sponsors going to be lured to support Kenyan cricket if nothing is written about it? How are the public meant to support a sport they are not kept informed about?

Let's compare Kenya to the other top Associates in terms of utilising the internet to promote cricket:

Scotland has an official website with a 'partners page' showing 14 different sponsors. There is also a supporter's website, The Rampant Lion. There are links on the official site to over 60 clubs, most of whom also have their own sites. The official site has results, fixtures, news on leagues, youth cricket, a shop, you name it.

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Ireland also has an Official Site, even though it is hosted by Cricket Europe. Again, there is news on results, clubs, development etc. Though admitedly less than on the Scotland sites, it is still a very informative page for those wanting to know about Irish cricket, and a great way to get the message out there to fans.

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UAE are represented on the web by an official site. Again, there are the links to clubs, results etc. as well as links to the homepages of the different Emitates. There is also an unofficial site at uaecricket.com, though it does not look to have been updated in a while.

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Bermuda have just launched their Official Website. It has current league standings, and all the usual information listed in the above sites. They also have a good news service devoted to keeping fans of Bermuda cricket up to date. Am I beginning to sound repetetive? If so, it is because I am trying to make a point.

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Canada's Official site has been a regular visiting point for me recently as I try to keep up with news on Kenya's rivals. Again they have the player profiles, league standings, and details about the current season's results and fixtures. As with most of the countries listed so far, there is also an archives section with information on the past few years domestic stats.

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Namibia have a great site with all the usual features. One thing I do especially like about it is the contacts link for Namibian cricket clubs. Basically, anyone who wanted to get in touch with a club could do it at the click of the mouse. Now wouldn't that be good for Kenyan cricket!

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Holland round out the rest of the top 8 Associates, i.e those who are taking part in this year's Intercontinental Cup, and the World Cup next year. I can't read Dutch, but I have a fairly good idea that this is their official site. It certainly looks official and again has all the features we should now have come to expect. It is also one of the only sites I have found so far to have a fan's Forum as well.

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Basically, Kenya remains the only one of the top Associates that does not have an official website. Not only that, neither do any of the Kenyan Provinces have sites. This is something that really does need to be dealt with. Not only will it serve as a reference point for those in Kenya who want to know about the game, it will also serve as a forum where Cricket Kenya can inform the rest of the World on their progress. I believe both are fundamental criteria if the game is going to continue to grow in Kenya. Not only that, it should be a matter of pride. It is shameful to say the least that we are the only major cricket playing nation without an official presence on the web.

Just to rub it in further, here are some more official websites of Associate and Affiliate members around the World:

USA.

Nepal.

Malaysia.

Denmark.

Singapore.

Hong Kong. (hosted on cricinfo)

Italy.

Chile.

Austria.

Croatia.

Czech Republic.

Germany.

Slovenia.

Thailand.

Tanzania.

Finland.

Kuwait.

Maldives.

Saudi Arabia.

That is a total of 26 Affiliates and Associates with websites. Some of the teams would probably not compete with our U17 side, but at least their public would be informed about it. I have said it before - it doesn't matter how good your product is if it is not marketed correctly. Cricket Kenya have a good product, but we desperately need to see some marketing.

Castle League Preview

This is the sort of thing I would like to see from the Kenyan press and Provincial administrations. Again from Cricket Europe comes a preview of the Ugandan season via Ronnie Kintu (New Vision Newspaper, Kampala). Good to see a site covering Associate cricket from around the World.

Scotland Humiliate Namibia

Scotland wrapped up their Intercontinental Cup match against Namibia in under three days last night, winning by an innings and 65 runs with a day still to go. Considering there was time lost to rain, this was an even easier victory than it at first looked. A full report can be found here on Cricket Europe. It is a great result for Scotland and puts them in a very strong position in the group, although Ireland will have a chance to join them very soon, as the Namibians play them in Ireland starting on Thursday. This doesn't give Namibia long to regroup, and the Irish will be looking to do at least as well as their cross channel rivals. Even before this match, we all knew that Scotland and Ireland would be the teams to beat in this group, and indeed in the competition. Namibia's capitulation illustrates just how much the Scots have improved, and also how much the other Associates will need to raise their game if they want to beat them.