Odisha duo Mohammad Jafar Iqbal and Sukhram Majhi were today accorded a warm-hearted felicitation for being selected in the 17-member Indian team for the 2nd T20 World Cup Cricket for the Blind, scheduled to be staged across 10 cities in India from January 28 to February 12, 2017. Chandra Sekhar Patnaik, who has been the state coach for visually impaired cricketers in Odisha since 2000, was also felicitated on the occasion.
Joining the felicitation function, which was organised jointly at a star hotel here by Cricket Association for the Blind in India (CABI) and Cricket Association for the Visually Challenged, Odisha (CAVIO), guests and promoters of the sport made a fervent appeal to everyone to support visually impaired cricketers and the ensuing T20 WC through financial contributions, sponsorships and also by your presence during the event. The dignitaries included KIIT University Founding Director Dr Achyuta Samanta, WC Organizing Committee members M J Srikant, Nitin Nayak and CAVIO General Secretary Sannyas Kumar Behera.
Jafar Iqbal has been playing matches for Odisha since 2003 and for Indian Team from 2011. Sukhram Majhi is a recent find and he was one of the key players of the Asia Cup that was held in February 2016 and this will be his first World Cup.
On being selected for the Indian team, Jafar said: ``I feel great to be a part of National squad, but still feel inferior to sighted players across the state and country, as we are not getting same facilities and opportunities to play cricket and to give the required time for practice. I have been fortunate enough to get a chance to represent the country but there are many others who need the push in the right direction. I`d like to appeal to media, corporates and the government to not discriminate between sighted players and visually impaired players and to provide equal opportunities to all through financial support or by establishing better infrastructure and training academies.’’
Thanking his coach, Jafar said: ``Patnaik sir has been my mentor, guide and well-wisher in moulding me into the cricketer that I am today. He has been our coach since 2000 and he has produced three international cricketers, including me, Sukhram and Pankaj Bhue. He has also been instrumental in bringing victories to the Odisha team at zonal and national tournaments.’’
Matches of the 2nd T20 WC Cricket for the Blind will take place in Delhi, Ahmedabad, Faridabad, Kochi, Indore, Bhubaneswar, Mumbai, Vizag/Vijaywada, Hyderabad, Bengaluru. As many as 10 countries would be participating in it. They are: Australia, Bangladesh, India, England, Nepal, New Zealand, Pakistan, South Africa, Srilanka and West Indies.
Rahul Dravid has been associated as the Brand Ambassador and he earlier launched CABI`s `Support Blind Cricket by buying a Cricket Ball` campaign. General public can purchase a cricket ball online www.blindcricket.in to support the cause of cricket for the blind for the World Cup. Recently, IndusInd Bank has also partnered up to support the Indian Blind Cricket Team.
The forthcoming T20 World Cup will witness a total of 48 matches, which include 45 league matches, two semifinals and the final. Bhubaneshwar will be hosting the match between India and New Zealand on February 7. The final will be played in Bengaluru. The champion team will get a cash prize of Rs 2O lakh and the runners-up side will be richer by Rs 15 lakh. India won inaugural event in 2012, defeating Pakistan in the final at Aditya Academy Ground in Bangalore by 29 runs.
INDIAN TEAM: Ajay Kumar Reddy (Captain), Prakasha Jayaramaiah (Vice-captain), Deepak Malik, Rambir Singh, Sukhram Majhi, T Durga Rao, Sunil R, D Venkateswara Rao, Ganeshbhai Muhundkar, Md Faisal, Md Farhan, Ketanbhai Patel, Md Jafar Iqbal, Sonu Golkar, Anish Beg and Prem Kumar G.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
PHOTO: Players, guest and officials (L to R) Sanyas Behera, Chandra Sekhar Patnaik, Jafar Iqbal and Sukhram Majhi, Dr Achyuta Samanta and M J Srikant at the felicitation function in Bhubaneswar on Dec 24, 2017.