This weekend, the NKDA ground will host a T20 tournament. No surprises there in times of IPL fever except that the players will all be in wheelchairs.
A three-nation cricket series will be held with teams from India, Nepal and Bangladesh in participation and organised by the Wheelchair Cricket Association of India along with Civilian Welfare Foundation, which works with persons with disabilities.
Himangshu Talukdar, one of the organisers, explained how wheelchair cricket is played. “The ground is reduced to half the size of a normal cricket ground. Thus the boundary is drawn at a radius of 35m from the centre. The players use sports wheelchairs which are much faster. The bowler bowls from a fixed spot but action remains round arm though a bit of bending of the elbow is allowed. When the batsmen have to take a run they drop the bat first as both their hands would be needed to rotate the wheels. The wheels need to cross the line at the other end of the crease to complete the run. And since they take stance exposing all three wickets there is no leg before wicket dismissal. ”
Talukdar pointed out that catches do get taken in the field. “Some fielders even throw themselves off the seat to take diving catches.”
“We want to raise awareness about the sport in Bengal. There is not a single player from eastern India in the India team,” said Abhirupa Kar, secretary of Civilian Welfare Foundation. India plays Nepal in the inaugural match on Friday at 9am followed by another against Bangladesh from 5pm. Entry is open to all.
