ACC U-19 Cup Cricket Tournament, that was inaugurated today by Crown Prince Paras, is the biggest international sports event for the country. It will not only provide Nepal with a chance to prove a successful hosts but also gives cricket lovers an unique chance to witness Nepali players performing. Nepal’s chances of winning the trophy and qualifying the the U-19 Youth World Cup is very high and that adds to the sporty treat.
Cricket Association of Nepal (CAN) had done, no doubt, the best job in previous two months to prepare three new venues thus confirming it won’t go away, but after the inauguration, I still felt there is a lot to be desired from them on the management side.
Rather than criticism, I like to call these things the areas needed to be considered in coming days.
1. It would have been better if players would have been considered with a little more respect and provided them sitting arrangement. It made no sense to me asking the players, obviously most of them were on formal dress, to stand on the ground for more than 90 minutes. At they could have remained seated until the Crown Prince arrived.
2. If you feel like players are fit enough to stand, then consider the managers and coaches. A few countries have their national president as managers, hadn’t it been nice if they were offered seats somewhere?
3. Then came the cultural show – a few dances. But for whom it was? It was for the chief guest, a few dignitaries who find themselves good enough to seat or stand around the Crown Prince. Players and officials were either looking on the back of the dancers and not seeing anything else than their friends’ heads.
I was behind all the players and I saw most of the players at the end either talking with each other or some of them even sat on the ground listening to walkman. Does that feel good?
5. There were a lot of school children all around the ground and they did very little task. I could make no sense of it (I don’t like the use of school children in such a way in any program).
6. My last thought: the inauguration would have been better if done in a conference hall.
7. Last but not the least: What people speak on the welcome speech? How many of the following quotes fits to the welcome speech:
ACC president Jagmohan Dalmiya was scheduled to visit but for some unavoidable reason he could not come so as the vice-president of ACC, I am here like the head.
I had a lot to say but this is not right place to say it.
I am proud to say that cricket’s elites are coming in Nepal for the ICC Development Committee meeting including ICC president Ehsan Mani.
Works have been started in Mulpani and ICC team will inspect it.
I just got an email from Mr. Watson asking for the progress on ACC Central Academy. I replied him we are doing good.
If I was doing the welcome speech, I would just tell them Welcome and wish good luck.
Our minister spoke on Nepali. Good love of mother-toungue ;-). But what’s the use of speaking if more than half of your listeners won’t understand it and won’t listen to it?
I hope the coming days of the event will be better than this. Good luck Nepal.
