ABU DHABI // The Emirates Cricket Board (ECB) has started a new youth tournament in a move it hopes will help some of the top cricketing talent in the country bridge the gap between youth level and the senior national team.
The Under 19 tournament is made up of the four Cricket Council teams from Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Sharjah and Ajman.
It starts today and runs until Friday, and the ECB hopes it will provide a showcase for young players.
Each of the four teams will play in a round-robin, 50-over-a-side league with matches slated in all four emirates.
The top two will advance to the final at the Abu Dhabi Cricket Council Nursery Ovals, while the remaining two will take part in the third-place play-off.
Previously, open trials were conducted to select national age group teams. Hundreds of youngsters turned up, including those who were anywhere close to being at a decent level.
David East, the chief executive of the ECB, says creating a competition among the best young talent in the country is the way forward.
“When we looked at the domestic structure in the UAE, there’s some fantastic cricket being played throughout the country,” East said.
“But one of the most important things we needed to do as far as we were concerned was to ensure the best players were playing from each of the emirates and have a pyramid structure.
“These players need to be challenged all the time against top-quality opposition.
“That’s why the inter-emirates competition becomes the most important thing, so the selectors can choose from the performances. These players are the next generation that may hopefully represent the UAE.”
According to East, the main objective is to provide youngsters the opportunity to showcase their talents, and above all increase the level of competition among them to improve their performances.
“We are going to reflect on that after the tournament because this is very much a trial with this particular format,” the former Essex wicketkeeper said.
“Undoubtedly, the information we get from it will provide us with the opportunity to choose the best players. It is a combined initiative from all of the senior members of the ECB.
“We believe it is part of their strategy in terms of high-performance progress and is driven by Andy Russell, the ICC’s development manager.
“The whole concept is best versus best, and improving our high performance and domestic structure as well.”
The U19 competition is only the start, and East said he hopes they will be able to extend the tournament to other age groups.
apassela@thenational.ae
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