India’s ‘Hitman’ Rohit Sharma to launch his cricket academy in Dubai

June 28, 2020

By K.R. Nayar

India’s run machine to share his skills through an academy set to be launched in September, and will be known as ‘CricKingdom Cricket Academy by Rohit Sharma’. The Indian opener expressed his keenness to promote cricket in the UAE

Rohit Sharma, nicknamed the ‘Hitman’ of Indian cricket, will set up a cricket academy in Dubai. Sharma has joined hands with CricKingdom and Rach Sports Academy & Management LLC to set up his academy here, which will be launched in September 2020. Sharma’s ability to adapt to all forms of the game and his reputation as a run machine is expected to benefit youngsters in the UAE.

It was nearly two months ago that I was informed of CricKingdom’s plans to set up this academy with Sharma, and this was finally confirmed last week by Girban Chakraborty of CricKingdom academy. Sharma has been designated as Brand Ambassador for the academy, which will be known as CricKingdom Cricket Academy by Rohit Sharma.

“I am delighted that CricKingdom will be launching the academy in Dubai. We can promote cricket in the UAE through a tailored annual curriculum, in-house mobile app for training & tracking, and global access to CricKingdom academies. The amazing Rach Sports team under the guidance of Mr. Ravi Kiran Rach & Mr. Girban Chakraborty with CricKingdom’s experience in running the best in class academy operations will definitely make this come true,” noted Sharma.

According to the organisers, this academy is expected to be a unique, state of the art, best in class set-up unlike other academies, and it will ensure that youngsters are groomed and trained under renowned coaches. The trainees will be put through a holistic programme and progress of every individual would be monitored by experts and their performances will be evaluated on a regular basis throughout the training period.

Dhawal Kulkarni, Mentor with CricKingdom, has assured that the progress of budding cricketers can be easily monitored: “Through CricKingdom, parents will have complete visibility of the progress of their ward making it more transparent and impactful,” he said. The organisers revealed that students of the academy will not only get master classes from the legendary Sharma but also from Dhawal and renowned celebrity players and coaches, subject to their availability.

Comments from those behind the launch of CricKingdom are also very encouraging. Chetan Suryawanshi – CricKingdom CEO who was also the Singapore Cricket Team captain for 10 years, said, "CricKingdom is a platform that connects cricket, players, coaches and students in an integrated ecosystem that drives seamless engagement, interaction, learning and transaction. CricKingdom will remove training inefficiencies that exist today, making every user’s experience productive and delightful.”

Parag Dahiwal, the Global Director with CricKingdom who has also represented the Singapore team said, “We want kids to start playing cricket at the early age of 5 where they build the muscle memory and would develop soon to be a feeder for schools, districts, state and national sides.”

Though the launch will be held only in September, online registrations will commence in July, depending on the current pandemic situation. The officials also noted that the academy will remain open throughout the year for both boys & girls for all age groups starting from the age group of 5 and above. Specialised camps, fitness, strength and conditioning clinics, video analysis sessions, personal training and domestic/international tours are some other premium features to be offered by the academy.