S.A.S. NAGAR, April 28: To find out the cricket scene here, you need to drive through the township. Once through, the chances are that you would find more eyesores than the brighter spots. And this, despite the world-renowned Punjab Cricket Association Stadium under its belt.Don't be surprised if you find a group of youngsters having a ball - their very dress/kit mocking the rules of the game - at the recognised coaching centre of the game Government Senior Secondary School, Phase 3 B-I. Also don't blame them if they are oblivious to it being a cricket coaching centre. ``If this is a coaching centre, where is the coach?'' says one. ``Where are the nets?'' says another. ``You must be joking.''The town has a rich tradition of the game. But again, just like Panchkula's case, the eminent ones choose to practice in the neighbouring Chandigarh. Bhupinder Singh Jr, Gurpreet Singh, Navdeep Singh, Sukhwinder Tinkoo, Sukhdev Tinkoo. the list goes on. They had to depend on Chandigarh's Sector 16 Cricket Stadium or the various schools and colleges in the city for their cricket skills.That was till the S.A.S Nagar-based Punjab Communications Limited decided to employ the entire Punjab Ranji Trophy squad in '92. Then came the PCA Stadium, with an excellent B ground, with international class practice facilities thrown in. However, it was still out of reach for an ordinary player. In the absence of any affiliation with the PCA, these players had to play for Chandigarh or Ropar in the various inter-district championships.The coming up of Mohali Cricket Association last year, raises hopes in this direction. Sending their own teams for the various tourneys was another welcome step. Though their senior team lost out to Ropar District in a rain-truncated match, the junior teams did exceedingly well, leading to adequate representation in the state teams. Now the MCA plan to launch their own cricket academy at the stadium.The park behind the stadium's rear entrance gate has been earmarked for this purpose. They also purpose to hold a cricket tournament for S.A.S Nagar's clubs. This, the officials feel, will help them spot talent in the township, which will further boost their teams for diferent Punjab state championships. ``There is a lack of cricket culture here. The only way to make up for the time lost is to encourage youngsters to learn the basics of the game,'' Kailash Sanwal, an office bearer of the MCA, feels. All he, and the MCA team, need to do is to pick youngsters from the ailing coaching centres and put them through the grind. Who knows, we might have the first international cricketer from the township.
