Strikzz is overdosing on activity. The city-based indoor sports arena at CMR Central, Maddilapalem, just recently opened, is breathless with activities that include cricket, archery, bowling and shooting. If physical games are not what you are going for, then Play Station 4 is where you must go. Or try your hand at 22 odd virtual reality games like tennis, boxing and goalkeeping.
There are two shooting ranges each for archery and shooting, two bowling alleys and, a cricket pitch, in between. Strikzz has set up a mechanised target at the rifle shooting range. While the default distance is 10 metres, it can be brought closer if required, but the lighting could be better. The archery is great fun and who knows may encourage kids to take it up as a sport.
Rifle shooting at the Strikzz, an indoor sports complex in CRM Central, Maddilapalem in Visakhapatnam
The cricket simulator is powered by Hyderabad-based Straight Drive Technologies and is almost like being at a professional net practice. A robot bowls 18 deliveries to you, and just so you feel like you are on field batting against the Indian bowling, there are projected videos of Ishant Sharma, Ashoke Dinda or Ravichandran Ashwin running at you. The video sync and the stadium’s ambient noise makes it feel like one is in a stadium participating in a live match.
A little about the bowling attack. The balls are made of soft rubber so none of the cumbersome pads or helmet are required as you bat. However, there are gloves for a better grip. The deliveries vary from 50 to 150 kilometre per hour and include the fast one, the confusing googly and more. One can tweak a few changes on the settings and request a slower delivery if you wish. Still, it is not as easy as it may sound and there is unpredictable bounce and it takes considerable skill not to be clean bowled!
Rifle shooting at the Strikzz, an indoor sports complex in CRM Central, Maddilapalem in Visakhapatnam
