Nigeria cricket targets north-east for talent hunt

Sequel to the recent successful International Series between Nigeria female cricket players and their Rwandan counterparts staged in Abuja, the Nigeria Cricket Federation (NCF) has disclosed plans to hunt for talent in the country’s north east and Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camps in the area.

Vice president of the NCF, Uyi Akpata, who disclosed this to TheCable at the Commercial Strategy Development workshop in Lagos Wednesday, said the federation had done its findings in the volatile zone and discovered that the kids could be motivated to maximize their potential in cricket.

“The whole zone has not been looked at for cricket for many years and we have decided as a federation to do all we can in ensuring that this objective is achieved in the shortest possible time,” Akpata said.

“We are right now waiting for the Nigerian general election to get done by early March so that we can move in with our plans which I am positive would be a success,” the NCF boss stated, even as he assured the federation was primed to drive its grassroots development in all parts of the country in appreciation of Nigeria being ranked as No. 36 in the world.

Regional director of Dubai-based CSM Sports & Entertainment, Mike Davis, who anchored the workshop, highlighted the achievements of the NCF board since it was inaugurated in late 2017, describing the feat as remarkable.

“We have to consider first where we were as well as where we are at the moment and where we want to be in the near future,” Davis said, stressing however that the participants at the workshop should aim at making Nigeria cricket not only a prominent sport in Nigeria but also assist it to attain full membership of the International Cricket Council (ICC).

“The media is a key partner and critical stakeholder in the pursuance of this lofty goals,” Davis also remarked.

The workshop, which held at the Four Point Hotel, Victoria Island from February 4 to 6, addressed corporate sponsors, technical personnel of cricket across Nigeria and the media in the efforts which the NCF said aimed to positively position management of the sport in the country.