Dubai: ‘Cricket for Care,’ the NGO run by Dubai-based businessman and cricket afficionado Shyam Bhatia, has joined hands with G-Force Cricket Academy to add value to the coaching complex at the Al Jaddaf area. The facility will henceforth be called Shyam Bhatia Cricket for Care ground.
Bhatia, whose privately built cricket museum has completed 10 years this year and has won accolades from the global cricket community, said he wanted to get more ‘‘hands-on’’ with the passion of his life. ‘‘We launched it informally on Friday in the presence of a bunch of young trainees of the academy. It was a refreshing experience to interact with them and I want to do my bit in helping G-Force reach the next level,’’ Bhatia said.
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Run by head coach Gopal Jasapara, the academy is one of the major privately run set-ups in Dubai which has thrown up many promising names in the local cricketing system. ‘‘While Cricket for Care will play a big role in maintaining the facility, my plan is to engage Emirati children for at least one coaching session a week and also help organise sessions for the children of determination. Not much work has been done in this area so far,’’ said Bhatia, whose annual cricket awards have been the definitive one for recognition for local cricketing excellence over the years.
Bhatia also wants to sponsor trips by renowned cricketers and coaches – many of whom are his good friends – to conduct coaching clinics at the academy. ‘‘While my NGO has been providing assistance with supply of cricket kits and other facilities to under-privileged children across the world, I felt it’s time to do something closer to home,’’ he said.
The Cricket for Care Foundation, founded by 2007, has made donations in over 20 countries around the world, including non-cricket playing countries like Thailand, Indonesia and Japan.