Dubai: Inspired by a meeting with England’s limited overs specialist Eoin Morgan and Geoff Cook, the ex-Durham cricket coach. the UAE-based Everest Sports Academy teams returned after a successful tour of the United Kingdom.
Three teams that toured the UK are the seniors team , the Under 16 and the Under 13 teams and they have also carried the experience of playing in those conditions there. They also carry with them the confidence of having performed well in the tour and playing at the prestigious Riverside Stadium in Durham which is an International Test and One-Day International venue.
Speaking to Gulf News about the tour, Shahzad Altaf, Director Everest Sports Academy, who was former UAE player who played in the 1996 World Cup, said: It is the fifteenth consecutive year that we have taken teams to Durham in UK and I thank Cook and the Durham County Cricket Club for all their support. The boys played in a two day match at the South Shields Cricket Club and it would improve the technique of the cricketers as they grappled with swinging conditions and their fielding had gone up by several notches during the tour.”
Coaches Indika and Mahesh conducted several physical training sessions for the players during the tour and it has made all the players fitter for the coming season. The Under 16 team led by Srinivasa Sarma and the Under 13 team led by Rahul Nambiar won a T 20 tournament which was held at the Marsden Cricket Club. The senior team led by Tariq Chohan also performed well on the tour.
Altaf thanked the sponsors Ghulam Mustafa Construction and Unicare Medical Centre. Incidentally, this academy had built a grass ground with turf at the Skyline College in Sharjah and had added floodlights and even a spectator stand. “The ground has full training facilities with a bowling machine as well. Our Academy is also planning to invite overseas teams for a international tournament in December,” said Altaf.
