Blind Cricket - Samarthanam Helping Visually Challenged People

Samarthanam Trust for the Disabled has many ways to help incorporate people with disabilities into the society. The focus of one of our previous articles on this forum was Sunadha, a spotlight on the artistic abilities of people with disabilities. Here we highlight another one of Samarthanam’s many programs for people with disabilities: Blind Cricket.

Blind cricket started in the United Kingdom during the early 1920s. There are five teams, which are composed of people with varying levels of sight. The teams are categorized as B1, low partial, B2, B3, and B4, with B1 as the team composed of players very blind. Blind cricket and regular cricket are similar, but there are a few variations in the rules and the equipment used. One major difference between regular cricket and blind cricket is the ball. The ball used in blincd cricket is bigger than normal cricket balls and it is filled with ball bearings. The increase in size allows players who have partial vision to see the ball and the ball bearings allow the fully blind players to hear the position of the ball. The wicket is also bigger, so the players with partial vision can see it easily and the blind players can touch it to orient themselves properly while batting or bowling. Throughout the game, umpires and players use verbal cues a lot. Some variations to the rules include that a fully blind batsman cannot be stumped out, and fully blind fielders are allowed to take a catch on the bounce.

Samarthanam believes that sports contribute to the development of an individual and re-energize the inactive mind. Samarthanam is involved in helping grow the passion and skill-set of blind cricket players, as well as encouraging them to play at the national level. With this commitment and passion towards blind cricket, Samarthanam has reached over 25,000 visually impared cricket players and they have played in four World Cup Blind Cricket Championships. Along with Samarthanam’s commitment to blind cricket, the founder of Samarthanam, Dr. Mahantesh G.K., is also very interested in and committed to blind cricket. He is the former president of World Blind Cricket Council and president of Cricket Association for the Blind in India.

Participation in cricket by the visually impared has many positive impacts on their lives. Many people who are visually impaired tend to be from rural areas and illiterate. These factors come to make it very difficult for them to join the workforce. In a study, 201 visually impaired cricketers assessed the improvements in their physical activity, mental well-being, social life, and economic independence through the sport. The results of the study showed that many of the players experienced an increase in confidence, satisfaction, quality of life, and social status after beginning to play cricket. The players also have had the opportunity to take advantage of the education that the Cricket Association for the Blind in India provides them. Blind cricket is an amazing way for players to feel a sense of independence and pride in their skills. Samarthanam helps these players by providing them with the training they need to be amazing players and giving them access to education so they can continue to be independent when they are not playing cricket.

Samarthanam USA, Juju Productions, Indian Association of Greater Boston (IAGB) and India Society of Worcester (ISW) are proud to present “Nazraana” - a live music concert featuring Vijay Prakash and Anuradha Palakurthi. The concert is a multilingual event, and will be held on August 20, 2022 at the Hanover Theatre in Worcester, MA.

Tickets are on sale at sulekha.com/nazraana22 and if you have any questions, would like to sponsor the event, or would like to purchase group tickets, you can email info@samarthanamusa.org. All the proceeds from the concert and any donations made will go towards helping Samarthanam Trust for Disabled reach their goal of helping 1 million disabled people by 2030.

Please connect with us on FaceBook’s event page - https://fb.me/e/3d7kFioZ7

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