SRINAGAR: One of the major sports events in district Budgam under the umbrella of the ‘Jhan Bhaghidari’ campaign kept Sports Council’s Magam Stadium on the cusp of some thrilling cricket encounters between teams from many districts of J&K.
The local organizers teamed up with J&K Sports Council under the My Youth My Pride vertical of special activities for the Magaam T20 Knockout Cricket Tournament which witnessed the participation of seventy-four teams and as many as 1480 players, compared to sixty-four teams in the last edition which was also a massive hit among the cricketing circles.
The tournament was played in a league cum knockout format. J&K Sports Time was the media partner for the event which played an important role in streaming live matches on social media platforms throughout the tournament.
Winners of the coveted tournament will earn a cash bounty of rupees one lakh while rupees fifty thousand and twenty thousand will go into the kitty of runner-up and team placed third respectively.
Every match of the tournament attracted a crowd of thousands to the ground and as per the organizer of the events, the cumulative figure of cricket enthusiasts thronging the ground during the event will easily run into lakhs
The Secretary of Sports Council, Nuzhat Gull presided over the final match ceremony as the chief guest while Parveez Rasool international cricketer was the special guest, and Managing Directors from Cricket Academy of Pathans Pune and Jaipur units were guests of honor on the occasion.
Speaking on the occasion Nuzhat Gull highlighted the importance of collaboration of sports events for team spirit and camaraderie between people from different backgrounds. She also emphasized the importance of promoting gender equality in sports and supporting women in sports. The chief guest congratulated the organizers for the professional approach and urged all participants to continue pursuing their passion for sports and strive for excellence.
The final match of the T-20 tournament was played between Shining Star Pampore Cricket Club and Green Line Cricket Club Srinagar. The match was in progress when a report was being filed.
Meanwhile, the National Wushu coaching camp that commenced at Sher-i-Kashmir Indoor Stadium Srinagar earlier this month is in full swing. The camp shall conclude in the first week of August.
The two-month-long preparatory camp of the Indian Wushu team for the forthcoming 19th Asian Games to be held in China and the 16th World Wushu championship in the USA shall select the best players after putting them through the battery of selection trials even as players are taught the nuances of the game by a group of elite coaches, including National Wushu Coach and Dhronacharya awardee Kuldeep Handoo as well.
Pertinently the Sports Authority of India had sanctioned the National Wushu coaching camp at Srinagar on the recommendation of the Wushu President Mr. Bhupender Singh Bajwa during the ACTC Meeting held in New Delhi earlier this year.
The Secretary of Sports Council Nuzhal Gull thanked the Wushu Association of India and Sports Authority of India for conducting a national camp in J&K. She said the move comes in the wake of the fact that J&K has set up some world-class sports infrastructure in recent months in almost all districts of the union territory and we are prepared to host not only national events but international events in near future.
The Wushu Association of India and the Wushu Association of J&K have thanked Lieutenant Governor J&K, Manoj Sinha, Sarmad Hafeez Secretary Youth Services Sports, and Secretary Sports Council Nuzhat Gull for support in organizing the camp in Srinagar.
Forty-five campers including seven coaches and two supporting staff are a part of the camp besides players who have a record of bagging medals at international events. The three campers from J&K are also part of the camp including Surya Bhanu Partap Singh (Asian Games Medalist) Abhishek Jamwal (National Games Medalist) and Owais Sarwar (National Games medalist) and the trio are pitched to make it to the national team for both the international events.
The Chief Coach, Kuldeep Handoo while speaking to the desk thanked SAI, MYAS, and WAI for choosing UT J&K as the permanent center for wushu training in future official events and expressed his gratitude to the Secretary Sports Council support and assistance for the successful National Wushu coaching camp in J&K.
In the meantime, Rohil Rashid from the hamlet of Takya Behram Shah, South Kashmir has made sports circles of J&K proud by making it to the national Softball team for Asia Cup to be held at Kochi, Japan later this month.
Rohil was selected based on his performance during the final selection trials conducted by the Softball Association of India. Rohil has been a regular in various national camps conducted by SBAI in various parts of the country earlier.
Indian National Softball team will leave for participation in the championship in Japan later this month under the banner of the Softball Association of India.
