New Delhi: The Indian Deaf Cricket Association has named 26 players to participate in the national coaching camp to be held from August 21-25 in Delhi. The association will then name a 15-man squad for the World Cup scheduled to be held from December 1-12 in Doha (Qatar) later this year.
Vinod Kumar Mata has been appointed as the Chief Selector. Ashok Kumar and Manoj Kushwaha will also form part of the selection committee for the T20 Deaf Cricket World Cup. MP Singh has been appointed as head coach and Devdutt Baghel has been appointed as coach for the World Cup.
“We selected 26 players from all over India on the basis of our local tournaments. We will select a 15-man squad for the World Cup in Qatar,” Baghel told CricketNext.
Despite their disabilities, the players at this level are highly trained and do not need much help in things other than cricket.
“The coaching process is similar to regular cricket. The only thing is that they can’t hear and some players can’t speak as well. But the rules and every other thing is similar to regular cricket,” Baghel told CricketNext.
“They communicate through sign language and they even have an interpreter for the coordination. They are generally trained kids and we don’t really have to put a lot of effort in their training. They have a good command on lip-reading,” Baghel added.