The Cycle Hub Women’s Cricket League only concluded last week but organisers have wasted no time in expressing their intention to host their second edition later this year.
There was no shortage of numbers as more than 60 females, many of whom were UAE internationals, took to the field at Go Stadia in Dubai Investment Park on Thursday and Friday for the 12-over encounters.
With 10 strong sides in contention, it was Team Warriors, under the captaincy of Priyanjali Jain, who reigned supreme and got their hands on the winning trophy.
Given the quality of the matches, Humera Khan, co-organiser, of the tournament, hopes more opportunities will arise in the future.
“I was very happy with how the overall competition went,” she said. “There were really some outstanding matches and great players on show and with it a big success, we hope to stage another tournament in November or December.
“During that period, the weather is cooler than what it is now. It’s still early stages (of hosting another) and we’ll wait and see.”
She added: “The ICC Academy is a potential venue. It’s in a convenient location and easily accessible plus it has superb facilities.”
The efforts of Humera and her team did not go unnoticed with Jain leading the plaudits for the initiative by saying: “It brought so many girls together to play cricket and I saw a lot of potential in many of the players that played in the competition.”
Speaking of her team’s triumph, she added: “I am extremely happy and proud of the way my team performed from the very first match until the last match.”
Besides the UAE internationals in action, there were also some new faces in the event including 10-year-old Tabia Khan.
Humera admitted she was only anticipating no more than 20 players but the turn-out exceeded her expectations.
“We really were not expecting so many females to take part but the entry numbers were very encouraging and it’s a positive sign that there is interest in women’s cricket in the UAE,” she said.
