A CRICKET Council of India (CCI) team has been confirmed for the 2016 Towards Zero Willowfest Australian Cricket Club Championship.
A party of 20 – some who have toured internationally – will compete in the annual carnival, bringing an international flavour to the event.
The announcement follows nine months of planning and talks, according to Willowfest president Anthony Telfer, who initially raised the possibility of the inclusion of a touring team with Mildura-based Indian cricketer Baljinder Sandhu after the 2015 Willowfest.
Last year’s Willowfest Player of the Carnival and Willowfest international ambassador Sandhu travelled back to his home country after the close of the 2015-16 Sunraysia cricket season and met with CCI general secretary R.S. Dandiwal, who was very keen on the idea.
From there emails were exchanged and language barriers overcome to the point where the Indians had their visas approved on Friday, Telfer announced last night at the Willowfest official launch.
Most of the players are from the rural city of Chandigarh, in the north of India, with Telfer unsure of how they will perform.
“The CCI picked what they believe is their best squad,” he said.
“They are coming to Willowfest to win it but we don’t know how they will go until they get here and compete.”
A number of the players are young rising stars looking to make it to the next level of their careers and have been given the opportunity to tour internationally by the CCI.
“They are young guys and their next step from here is to get some exposure,” Telfer said.
Story by Angus Dearlove – Sunraysia Daily