AHC-Kinnaird Girls Cricket Cup: Developing grassroot level cricket in Lahore

Beginning fittingly on March 8, International Women's Day, the Australian High Commission (AHC), in collaboration with Kinnaird College for Women and supported by Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) launched the AHC-Kinnaird Girls Cricket Cup 2019. A brilliant initiative to encourage young girls to join the sport, it entailed a three-day coaching session with first-class cricket coaches for all teams, before they met in intense clashes on the last two days.



The tournament saw six teams participate; Government Shuhda-e APS Memorial Girls High School, Government Central Model School, The City School Shalimar Campus, Kinnaird Cricket, Unique Cricket and Galaxy Sports Academies. The participants were all given their kits on behalf of the hosts and as the young teams walked into the Kinnaird College Cricket Ground, brimming with uncontainable excitement, coupled with pre-match nerves, it was evident that the future of women's cricket in Pakistan was bright.



Decked out in purple, red, blue, yellow, orange, gray and red kits, these young girls sat on the periphery of the ground, observing their competition, learning from their mistakes and vowing not to repeat them. The passion that blazed in their eyes was unmistakable.



On the first day of the matches, all teams played two matches each, with six overs a side. For most, it was their first time playing on an actual cricket pitch and the inexperience showed, but the determination to deliver drove the girls as they bent down, alert, ready to pounce of any ball that made the mistake of coming their way in the field.



The captains with the trophy. © Women's CricZone



Based on the results of the matches on the previous day, it was announced that the host team, Kinnaird would face off against the team in grey to see who would take out the title. In the end, the hosts emerged victorious.



It takes a lot to stand out when 66 girls are playing at the same time, in back-to-back matches. However, watching a seven-year old run up to her mark and come sprinting in to the batter, bowling with real pace and forcing them onto their back foot leaves a lasting impression. Samia, the seven-year old being talked about here did just that. Opening the bowling for Kinnaird, she produced a master over. Her side was defending 84 runs from their allotted overs against Galaxy Sport Academy. The chase looked highly improbable anyway, but her over made the result indisputable. The scorecard at the end of her over read 1-4. She had knocked over the top order completely and even the one scored was not off the bat, but courtesy of a wide! Speaking to her coach afterwards, it was learnt that she had "already, at the age of seven, established her aim to represent Pakistan." Given her performance, if she continues this way, there is no doubt she will achieve it.



The closing ceremony on March 13 saw all participants being awarded certificates, while the winners took home a trophy. The ceremony was attended by Australia's High Commissioner to Pakistan Margaret Adamson who said, "Sharing a passion with Pakistan for cricket, the Australian High Commission was pleased to join with Kinnaird College for Women and PCB to host this initiative to empower girls through cricket and promote gender equality through sport." The event was well-attended by superstars of the women's game in Pakistan including their hero in the series against West Indies Sidra Ameen, all-rounder Aliya Riaz and seamer Natalia Pervaiz.



The above mentioned players also attended a coaching session held at Kinnaird. Speaking to Coach Farah afterwards, she stressed on such open communication between the current national players and those aspiring to reach that level. "The girls who are wanting to represent Pakistan should meet the ones who are already representing it," she said. "It can boost their confidence level and develop a great passion to get the honour, the green blazer and the dignity which comes being a national player."



The winning team. © Women's CricZone



This initiative truly is a big step forward in developing women's cricket at a grassroots level so that girls grow up playing the sport. The coaching is also an immense help, with the girls learning vital fielding, batting and bowling skills like the long and short barrier, as well as how to run efficiently between the wickets. However, one draw back was the fact that this tournament was mostly held during weekdays, which may have presented a challenge to some girls.



Regardless, this tournament will have kindled a fire inside several girls who will want to pursue the sport and now know they have a place to train at, with Kinnaird providing quality coaches- Coach Farah included- and hosting practices every weekday.



As a concluding note on the tournament, Coach Farah remarked, "The tournament went outstanding which proves that the future of women cricket team is very bright as it was a school level tournament and we found out that the young girls are full of zeal. They have the potential. They wanted to learn and excel and this is what stood out."



She further added, "I congratulate AHC and KC for the successful event. The tournament has given youngsters and us (as coaches) an opportunity  to show what we can do, which is great. I believe that with hardwork and focus, these young girls can become good players and can pursue cricket as their profession."