THE Washington Cricket Center based in Laurel, MD (Between Baltimore and Washington DC), recently hosted a weekend-long American Cricket Federation (ACF) Level 2 and Level 1 Instructor cricket coaching certification clinic. The recent coaching clinics were conducted by ACF’s Director of Coaching Jatin Patel that produced 6 Level 2 coaches with Level 1 instructor capabilities with plans to offer year round Level 1 coaches training at the WCC. It is a crucial first step towards providing an adequate number of trained coaches to help develop the potential of the youth and women cricketers in the Washington DC and surrounding areas. WCC is aiming to provide year around academy support for all who need to explore their skills and capabilities.
Interest is very high in youth and women’s cricket in Maryland, Virginia, Washington DC and surrounding areas. Youth after school cricket programs and in-school cricket instruction programs are increasing rapidly in the area. However, this new development is being hampered by the lack of certified cricket coaches in the area. Encouraging and expanding the number of coaches is a vital part of WCC’s mission to promote cricket in the area and the USA. The coaching clinic held by ACF was an attempt to address that deficit.
The Washington Cricket Center and its non-profit arm, the Washington Cricket Center Academy (WCC Academy) were founded in 2014 by Dr. Ajith and Dr. Priyanthi Silva. WCC Academy is a not-for-profit, tax-exempt organization under section 501(c) (3) of the revenue code. They began this initiative with a vision to promote the game by providing state-of-the-art facility support and opportunities to learn, play and enjoy the world’s second most popular sport. The WCC currently owns both indoor and outdoor facilities to support cricket development and year around training. WCC facilities are recognized as being among the finest in the country. The complex has its own indoor and outdoor facilities with four side-by-side cricket fields, all with newly built natural turf pitches with (Bermuda grass) and is about to add a fifth cricket field in the same complex that can be used for youth and women’s cricket. It also has matting pitches and one ICC approved non-turf match wicket, practice nets and a clubhouse.
WCC’s activities are geared to achieving its formal mission: To promote the sport of cricket by conducting games and tournaments for cricketers nationally and internationally, and to enhance development opportunities for cricketers in general and youth and women cricketers in particular.
About the American Cricket Federation Cricket (ACF) Coach Certification Program
The ACF Cricket Coach Certification Level 1 program was launched in May 2014, followed by the Level 2 certification program one year later in June 2015. Since the launch, 19 States can now boast of having certified ACF cricket coaches, with nine states having certified instructors for Level 1 coaches.
