Sports Bulletin
JOHANNESBURG:-The South African Blind cricket team will visit Pakistan to play a bilateral series of the three One Day Internationals (ODI) and three Twenty20 matches from February 26 to March 9, 2022.
In an effort to ensure a truly memorable and successful tour for the team, the City of Johannesburg's Sport and Recreation Directorate and Blind Cricket South Africa (BCSA) organized a training camp for the preliminary squad.
It is pertinent to mention that the Pakistan Blind Cricket Council (PBCC) has invited Blind Cricket South Africa (BCSA) to compete in an international bilateral blind cricket series from 26 February to 9 March 2022. The South African national team will compete in three One Day International (ODI) and three T20 matches against their Pakistani counterparts. This tour promises to be enthralling as it will challenge the team against the 2017 T20 World Cup and 2018 ODI World Cup finalists.
“It has been an effective training camp for Blind Cricket South Africa. This camp has enabled us to not only prepare and practice, but also to promote and facilitate our players' dignity and independence," said Michael da Silva, the coach of BCSA national team.
“A 20-member South African team with players who all come from different provinces, including officials, will tour Pakistan," he said, adding that Blind Cricket South Africa will reveal the national team players for the series in the first week of February and that they have identified a pool of 25 to 30 players from whom the final line-up will be picked.
The team stayed at Haron Bridge Retreat from Friday, January 21, to Sunday, January 23, 2022, for the training camp. BCSA identified the need for a national camp to prepare the country's best visually impaired cricketers for what would be a difficult yet exciting voyage to Pakistan.
We've been working really hard. It hasn't been easy, but the team is doing very well," said Johan Schroeder, South Africa's 2013 Blind Cricketer of the Year and South African Blind Cricket national team member.
“Being at the training camp has helped me understand that there is genuine concern and appreciation for each other among the players. To us, cricket is not only a game where champions are built. On and off the pitch friendships are also being forged, even on the opposing team," he said.
The unabashed enthusiasm for the game is what stands out about blind cricket. As players practiced at the Haron Bridge Retreat Cricket fields, they eagerly anticipated sweep shots, committed their bodies on the line, and celebrated wickets with zeal.
“We are really thankful to the City of Johannesburg and other sponsors for their help and support as players prepare for Pakistan; these gestures mean a great deal to us and the players," said Isaac Bidla, the president of Central Gauteng Lions Blind Cricket.
“Playing blind cricket teaches players a lot; not only do they enjoy themselves, but they also develop mobility, the capacity to respond to sound, and fair play."
All Covid-19 regulations were followed on arrival, and all team members were required to take a Covid-19 test to ensure safety throughout the course of the training camp.
(Thanks to Ntombifuthi Junerose Nkosi).
