The port city is organising for the first time a State-level cricket tournament for visually challenged. Eight teams from different parts of Andhra Pradesh are participating in the four-day tournament commencing at the ACA-VDCA stadium B ground here on May 14. The Vizag Blind Cricket Association is organising the tournament, supported by organisations and individuals.
Mavuri Venkata Ramana, MD of CMR group, who is providing tracksuits and shoes to all the eight teams, said a match he witnessed earlier displayed the striking quality of visually handicapped persons’ sensory powers.
He released a brochure on the tournament here on Saturday.
Telugu Desam publicity secretary Panduranga Rao said district Ministers Ch. Ayyanna Patrudu and Ganta Srinivasa Rao were supporting the tournament.
Food, accommodation and transport are being provided to the players. Shields and prizes are also being sponsored. The Visakhapatnam District Cricket Association is providing umpires and scorers.
The eight teams participating in the tournament are Bobbili Lions, Vizag Warriors, Vizag Challengers, Tirupati, Anantapur, Kurnool, Vijayawada and West Godavari. The eight teams will be divided into two pools for a league phase and the top team from each pool will play the final.
VBCA honorary president Vasupally Ravikumar, president of Vizag Journalists Forum Gantla Sreenubabu, VBCA president S. Ramakrishna and Satti Ramakrishna Reddy explained about the tournament.
The game and the rule
Secretary of the district association Majji Ramana, who himself is a player, explained that a ball filled with ball bearings is used. “As the ball is rolled it makes noise and the batsman and fielders would be able to follow it. Rest of the rules are similar to the conventional cricket game.”
Though cricket for visually handicapped is being held in the city for the first time, the game was active in the city, with four teams in action, he said. Two from the city -- Venkatesh and Ajay Kumar Reddy -- and Durga Rao of Bobbili were in the Indian team that won the World Cup for visually challenged held in South Africa last November-December, while Venkatesh and Ajay along with Pushparaj of Kurnool were members of the team that won the World Cup in 2012.
Each team consists of four totally blind (B 1 category), three with below six meters visibility (B 2 category) and four with six meters visibility (B 3).
Mr. Ramana feels that the game should be encouraged at school level all over the State.
The State-level event to begin at
ACA-VDCA stadium on May 14
