‘U-19 cricket team needs more exposure’
By Paul Munyuki
INTERNATIONAL Cricket Council Elite Panel umpire Aleem Dar believes the lack of four-day cricket at the Under-19 age group level will have a negative impact on the future of the game in Zimbabwe.
The Zimbabwe Under-19 team only plays the one-day game and the Twenty20 version and the international umpire has urged Zimbabwe Cricket to introduce a three or four-day version of the game for the juniors.
Dar argues that if there is a longer version of the game at this age group, then the players would develop the skills needed for them to stay longer at the crease when they graduate into the senior team.
"I have also inquired about the domestic cricket structure of the country (Zimbabwe) from different responsible officials of the (ZC) board and it has transpired that their teams are confined to playing 50-overs games," said Dar.
"The three or four-day fixtures are altogether missing from the Under-19 domestic cricket structure.
"This gap has reduced opportunities for the younger generation of batsmen to increase or enhance their temperament to prolong their stay at the crease.
"This habit is always developed in three or four-day matches and primarily developed at grassroots level and cannot be improved through merely playing one-day cricket or Twenty 20 matches," said Dar.
Dar also noted that the migration of Zimbabwean students to other countries was also having an effect on the game.
"The young generation, specifically teenage students, are eagerly engaged in playing cricket at school level but when they move to college or university level, they shift to other countries to achieve better education abroad.
U-19 cricket team needs more exposure
Re: U-19 cricket team needs more exposure
Thats would help a great deal, we need it!