WACA visit to Cricket Indonesia

Charlie & Simon in Indonesia © ICC

WACA staff members Charlie Burke and Simon Barras recently ventured over the Indian Ocean for a visit to their ICC EAP Partner; Cricket Indonesia (CI).

Jakarta was the first destination with the annual Jakarta Cricket Association dinner held at the Le Meridien Hotel. Former Australian cricketer Greg Matthews was the special guest. The WACA donated a signed 2006-07 Retravision Warriors bat, which was auctioned off and raised $AUD800. These funds will be put to use for equipment and resources for CI.

Bogor, 40 km from Jakarta, is a thriving cricket area with many of the schools participating in competitions and cricket programs. Burke and Barras held a training session for the best under 15s, as well as several clinics with local schools that take part in cricket programs.

Training facilities are a little different to what is on offer at the WACA - the net used for the under 15s was in the front yard of a house, and the road was used for fielding practice. The majority of schools in the area use basketball courts or other concrete areas for cricket training.

During the training sessions CI Development Officers and Nicholas Mortimer (CI National Development Coordinator) joined both WACA coaches as part of their own professional development.

Bali was the next destination as the best under 16s and under 19s in the region had two days of coaching at the main ground, Bukit Oval in Udyana. The coaching included fielding, batting and bowling techniques as well as some centre wicket practice.

The visit was again a great success and is something the WACA wishes to continue for years to come.

"We hope that over the years the WACA continues to see a steady improvement in all aspects of cricket in Indonesia and we appreciate your efforts and the important role that you play in our development," said Mortimer.

Cricket Indonesia is an affiliate member of the ICC. Please visit Cricket Indonesia's new site https://www.cricket-indonesia.com.