He came, he showcased his batting skills and he gave thumps up to the Andhra Cricket Association (ACA) for promoting cricket in the districts.
Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) president Anurag Thakur, braving the hot weather, inaugurated two playfields at ACA-KDCA Cricket Centre at Mulapadu in Krishna district and later opened indoor nets at the ACA cricket stadium coming up at Mangalagiri in Guntur district, along Secretary Ajay Shirke.
Earlier, both were given a traditional welcome amid chanting of Vedic mantras. Young cricketers stood on both sides greeted and interacted with them. It was a sight to see Thakur, a former first class player, wielding the bat in gay abandon often clearing the boundaries effortlessly.
“ACA has set a benchmark to the other associations. It believes in sprucing up quality facilities for young cricketers in rural areas. It is nice to see a village having two lush green playfields,” he said while interacting with the media.
He also opened facilities such as swimming pool, dressing rooms, dormitories, dining hall and rest rooms. An exhibition portraying pictures of the upcoming playfields in the districts drew the attention of the BCCI honchos.
Member of Parliament Kesineni Srinivas, Mylavaram MLA Uma Maheswara Rao, Sports Authority of Andhra Pradesh P. R. Mohan honoured the BCCI chief with shawls and mementos.
Modern association
Inaugurating the indoor nets at Mangalagiri stadium, Mr. Thakur said even before the capital city came up at Amaravati, ACA was coming up with a world-class stadium. “ACA is a modern association with innovative thoughts. When we were young we never had such facilities. Make use of them,” he advised the academy inmates. Mr. Thakur in his brief speech recollected his association with the late ACA chief D. V. Subba Rao, a legal brain of BCCI.
State minister Kamineni Srinivas, Member of Parliament Galla Jayadev, BJP MLA Vishnukumar Raju, Mangalagiri municipal chairman Chirnajeevi and sarpanch Balaji Naik took part in the function.
