American College Cricket » University of Central Florida

TV – Sai Ramesh is 2012 Championship MVP !

ljodah — Sat, 28 Apr 2012 15:24:30 +0000

2 Time All American Graduates to the Pros ! Farewell to Sai !

ljodah — Sat, 16 Jul 2011 01:28:41 +0000

He’s the only cricket player to play for 2 different Colleges in American College Cricket history, and being an All American for both schools in different years (2010 & 2011). Now he has graduated and set to return to India to play professional cricket at the Ranji Trophy level. He will begin training in Mumbai shortly.

Saisitaram Ramesh burst unto the USA cricket scene at the 2010 American College Cricket Spring Break Championship when he wrecked teams with his off-spin bowling, and scored 51 in the Semis, nearly propelling the University of Florida Bulls to a win over eventual Champions, York University. Ramesh’s all round performances qualified him for the 2010 All American College 1st team.

Late 2010 Ramesh transferred to the University of Central Florida to complete his MA in Electrical Engineering but faced a problem – UCF had no cricket team. I convinced Sai that we should start a team so he got to work, and in a month UCF was able to field a strong team at the 2010 American College Cricket South East Championship, then 2011 American College Cricket Spring Break Championship. By this semester he said, “Cricket at UCF will be a sanctioned Club.”

Ramesh is one of the best batsmen in the USA. With orthodox strokes he can devastate the bowling in any kind of cricket, and has. Among his records are,a century in 35 balls, and 175 in a 20 over game.
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Ramesh has been the top batsman and bowler in league cricket in Florida. Playing in the South Florida Cricket Alliance, Sai Ramesh was awarded the MVP, Best Batsman, and also was given the Most Centuries Awards. He went on to play great in the USACA SE Regional tournament, and plays for a team called the US Tigers in various tournaments.

When Sai left India to pursue his Master’s in Electrical Engineering in the USA he did not know “if he would be able to play cricket again”. He had begun playing cricket at age 5, in Delhi India and made it onto the Delhi Under 15 Team. 8 years later he moved to Chennai and played First Division Cricket for Sanmar Chemplast, which according to Ramesh won the Championship multiple times.

He also captained the South Zone University Team and at one point was on the list of Under 19 probables for India he said.

At the University of Central Florida, Sai assisting me in coordinating the visit by cricket icon Shiv Chanderpaul to the UCF campus where students from UCF and the University of Florida got to meet the great batsman. This was the first ever visit by an active Test player to an American University campus. What did he think of meeting Chanderpaul ? ” It was an awesome experience…such a down to earth person ! truly amazing ! Mr.Chanderpaul sporting a UCF T-Shirt..How about that ! “

Sai,24, has had interviews with some major companies but so far, no offers. He said, ” Leaving USA is a little heart-wrenching…When I came to USA, I dreamt of earning big money, having a big job. None of that has happened yet. Instead it has taught me the Value of Chasing your dreams…..probably thats why they say -”Its a land of Opportunities”.

About American College Cricket, ”

It was great ! The competition at the Championships were bigger than I had imagined ! There were so many good players I played against. Its the best thing happening in cricket in America, and has provided cricket with an American media platform it didn’t have before.”

Sai Ramesh MA (UCF), All American USF 2010, All American UCF 2011, is leaving, but he has left a legacy for the game that he can feel great about.

Sai,playing for USF at the 2010 American College Cricket Spring Break Championship

Every Picture tells a Story-Greatest Rock Album ever & Great Action!

ljodah — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 14:28:58 +0000

In 1971 “Every Picture tells a Story” by Rock Legend Rod Stewart became the first album ever to top both the American & British Charts simultaneously. The album is “a mixture of rock, country, blues, soul, and folk ” and includes the huge hit “Maggie May” about many schoolboys’ fantasy.

Every picture from the 2011 American College Cricket Spring Break Championship tells a story about the effort of the members of American College Cricket to raise the profile of the game and bring it back into the American & Canadian mainstream – keep spreading the photos on Facebook, and the word.

Photos by Greg Uzelac (Northwestern) – College Media & College Cricket players may use.

Rosters for Cleveland State,U of Iowa, Central Florida & South Florida !

ljodah — Fri, 11 Mar 2011 22:37:20 +0000

The teams for the following 4 Colleges have been named, to viie for the Chanderpaul Trophy at the 2011 American College Cricket Spring Break Championship.

The USF Bulls return, after making the Finals in 2009 and the final four in 2010 – they’d like to stampede to the Finals and win it all this year. Last year they gave eventual Champions York University a strong fight, but dropped some crucial catches. They are led again by Harsha Boddepalli.

Sai Ramesh was last year’s Championship MVP, playing for USF, but he transfered to UCF. Together with Lloyd Jodah, Ramesh started a team at UCF which showedd its strenght at last Fall’s Southeast Championship. The UCF Knights will be a force to reckon with, and like the other Florida teams have a lot of experience playing on the Stadium pitches recently courteesy of BIG League USA.

Cleveland State University is new to the season ball as team but is another example of a team that has come together inspired by American College Cricket. Under Club President Jagjitan Singh Gill and encouraged by Jodah they hosted their first tapeball tournament last year and began preparing for the 2011 American College Cricket Spring Break Championship.

The team from the Big 12, University of Iowa has come far fast. Started just over a year ago, the cricket club has already been granted a cricket field by the school ! Under the leadership of Anup Gandhi they then participated in the Midwest Championship and now have their Hawkeyes set on the national Championship !

Facilities-wise American College Cricket would like the example of the Iowa Hawkeyes cricket club to inspire other teams to work towards getting cricket pitches and fields.

CLEVELAND STATE UNIVERSITY
1. Jagjitan Singh Gill (President)
2. Ishan Bhatt (Captain)
3. Abhishek Soni
4. Abhilash Gadi
5 . Dhaval Patel
6. Suraj Murali
7. Sanketh Chukkapalli
8. Manikandan Ganesan
9. Pavan Maheshwarm
10. Sadiq Khan
11. Fasih Sayed

The squad for UNIVERSITY OF IOWA
Anup Gandhi
Abhinabha Gupta
Pradeep Kapadia
Urvil Patel
Bhupinder Singh
Alok Madasani
Mohan Kondapalli
Puneet Madaan
Brajesh Singh
Dhaval Patel
Arunan C
Darren Stortz

Team UNIVERSITY OF CENTRAL FLORIDA Knightstrikers

1. Saisitaram Ramesh (C)
2. Kirtan Patel (VC)
3. Melan Jansz
4. Gavin Britto
5. Atit Patel
6. Samih Sadiq
7. Naseer Ahmed
8. Zain Syed Masood
9. Sundar Raghavan
10. Zain Shahid
11. Sagar Karandikar
12. Kalyan Karnati
13. Varendra Jamwant

ROSTER for UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH FLORIDA
Sri Harsha Boddepalli All-Rounder

Abhay Vasudev All-Rounder
Harsha Garapati Allrounder
Ravi Nandur – Batsman
Maqsud Indawala – All-Rounder
Himanshu Patadia -All-Rounder
Satish Hanumanthu -Bowler
Ben Leo David Paul Chelludarai -All-Rounder
Anfas Hamza -All-Rounder
Madhura Rajpakshe – Batsman/ WK
Nagesh Nayak – All-Rounder
Anshul Lakshman – Batsman/ WK
Arjun Chauhan -Bowler
Abhinav Kontham – All-Rounder
Prashanth Pal – Bowler
Sudeep Bansal -All-Rounder
Jinendra Lakshmichand -Bowler
Nirav Shah – All Rounder

Cricket TV – University of Central Florida, team to watch !

ljodah — Tue, 09 Nov 2010 05:10:31 +0000

University of Central Florida Cricket Captain Sai Ramesh speaks with Daisy

In just one month Sai Ramesh,MVP of the 2010 American College Cricket Spring Break Championship (Ramesh played for USF before transferring as a student to UCF) ,with the assistance and motivation of American College Cricket pulled together a team at the University of Central Florida.

The team,as well as other UCF and UF students were then treated to a visit by International cricket star Shiv Chanderpaul.

At the Southeast Championship UCF narrowly missed getting to the Finals, losing the deciding game by just 1 run. However they demonstrated that they are a force to be reckoned with at the 2011 national Championship in March.

Questions & Answers-UF & UCF students meet one of the World’s best ever !

ljodah — Thu, 14 Oct 2010 04:29:25 +0000

Sai Ramesh UCF with Shiv Chanderpaul (in a UCF shirt)

In both 2007 & 2008 Shiv Chanderpaul averaged over 100 runs, a feat only accomplished by Don Bradman previously. Chanderpaul recently became # 10 on the List of top Tests run scorers of all-time. He also has the 4th fastest century ever in Test cricket and has been the rock of the West Indies cricket team for at least the past 10 years.

On his recent meeting with cricket players from the University of Central Florida and the University of Florida (Gators Cricket Club) Shiv Chanderpaul told the students they could ask him any questions. Here are their questions , and Chanderpaul’s answers:

Who do you think is the best batsman in the world ? ”Sachin”

What do you think of other Indian batsmen ? “I like to watch Laxman and Schweg…the time they have to play their shots is incredible, especially against someone with the speed of Shoiab Aktar.”

Fastest bowler you’ve faced ? ”Shoiab Aktar, Alan Donald, Brett Lee, Tait…Malinga is a bit fast, Shane Bond too. But you try not to play “name” cricket, keep it simple,cricket is between a bat and a ball…don’t complicate it.”

Who’s your best buddy on the West Indies team ? ”Chris Gayle,he’s a very quiet guy…very funny…very easy to get along with.”

What do you do to prepare for a tour or series in different countries ? “In Guyana the wicket plays similar to India. To prepare for South Africa, Australia or New Zealand…I bat on astro-turf with a bowling machine to get the bounce. If I don’t have that around I practice on concrete, sometimes with tapeballs.”

Do you think Usain Bolt would have been a good cricketer ? ”Probably, he bowled Chris Gayle in a game….I think he’s a better runner though.”

What team do you really look forward to playing against ? ”You always want to do well against is Australia…they bring the best out of you .They are very tough,especially in Australia.”

How do you respond to sledging ? “I don’t say anything ……I answer with my bat…”

Do you say anything when you’re fielding ? ”I support my bowlers.”

Why doesn’t the West Indies produce the fast bowlers it used to ? ”There are many reasons but one is, there is not a lot of money in cricket in the Caribbean….if you play cricket all the time, and don’t finish school, what job can you get ? Parents are not happy about that. But cricket is changing for the better, with IPL and other such tournaments bringing opportunities into the game. “

What do you think of the shorter format like 20/20s ? “It’s not either,or….I love Test cricket…and I also think the short format is good for the sport and is helping improve the game. A 20/20 game can fit into a spectator’s evening, after work. It’s important that the game fit in people’s lives.”

How do you adjust from playing a 20/20 game to a Test Match and isn’t the short form bad for technique ? ”It’s a lot of hard work. You play 20/20 with a lot of aggression practically every ball and it can affect technique,but if you can’t adjust…well that’s why a player might specialize in one form. That’s part of being a professional athlete.”

What do you think about the idea of breaking the ODI’s into parts ? ”It’s complex, for instance it will break up a batsman’s innings, they’ll have to play themselves back in.”

How do you work on your stamina ? ”I spend hours daily..I practice and I go to the gym and use weights, I run “

How do you eat, to play ? ”The day before you want to make sure eat a lot of complex carbohydrates to give you energy, and drink a lot of fluids. “

Before you go out to bat, do you do any kind of yoga or special thing ? ”Do whatever you feel will elevate your performance, I say my mantras. “

What do you do when your cricket is not going well or who do you speak with ?

“I examine what I’ve been doing…or call Chris my manager or Rohan Kanhai. Kanhai is always serious about cricket, and will tell you the tough truth, even if you feel hurt. Sometimes I don’t want to hear it but he knows what he’s speaking about, and his advice always helps. One time in Australia I got out and I heard an earful from Kanhai, so in the 2nd innings, though Brett Lee was sending down some thunderbolts I had to make runs…cause I didn’t want to hear it from Coach ( I call Kanhai Coach)”.

Chanderpaul told the students of UCF and UF :

“American College Cricket has accomplished a lot of things. A lot of teams are joining and coming on board with us……its the right place, at the college level….American College Cricket is going to cause Americans to pay more attention, learn the rules and its going to grow more. Young players are being inspired to play the game more. That’s why from the beginning when Lloyd asked me to be involved I said yes. “

The national college championship for the Chanderpaul Trophy, the American College Cricket Spring Break Championship will be played March 15 -20,2011 at the Cricket Stadium in Central Broward Regional Park. Regional Championships are taking place this Fall around the USA.

Shiv Chanderpaul meets with UCF & UF students !

ljodah — Thu, 30 Sep 2010 04:53:28 +0000

It was a quick trip to the USA, yet International cricket Superstar Shiv Chanderpaul took time to meet with college cricket players from the University of Florida (Gators,UF) and the University of Central Florida (UCF).

Chanderpaul recently became # 10 on the List of top Tests run scorers of all-time.He also has the 4th fastest century ever in Test cricket and has been the rock of the West Indies cricket team for at least the past 10 years. At age 36, his consistently high performance is similar, in American terms, to Derek Jeter.

Sai Ramesh UCF, who excelled at the 2010 American College Cricket Spring Break Championship,described the exciting evening:

“Thanks to American College Cricket President Lloyd Jodah, for letting me play a part in this momentous occasion ! A cricket superstar of Chanderpaul’s stature visting an American college campus ! Truly unprecedented !

I greeted Mr Chanderpaul and his Manager Krish when they arrived ! I asked Shiv if he didn’t mind wearing the UCF shirt and he accepted it with pleasure ! Everyone was so thrilled seeing SHIV in the first place ,plus sporting a UCF tshirt was a great gesture !

I brought them to the seminar hall that was booked for the event. After a big round of applause, I played a the video of when Chanderpaul hits a six off Chaminda Vaas to win the match for West Indies) ! I gave a brief intro (not that it was needed !) of Mr.Chanderpaul and his achievements.

A humble celebrity, instead of just a speech he said we could ask him any questions ! He was asked all the kind of questions about his career, his best moment..cricket related technical questions…about his stance…how he coped with the pressure of international cricket…and so on !

He seemed to enjoy the questions, as he started cracking jokes and making fun out of the questions ! After the questions were done, the photo session and the autographs were given to the students !

Shiv and Chris promised that they would help set up training sessions for the UCF cricket players at the campus !

It was an awesome experience…such a down to earth person ! truly amazing ! Mr.Chanderpaul sporting a UCF T-Shirt..How about that ! “

The University of Central Florida students and members of the Gators Cricket Club from the University of Florida who were present were enthralled by the opportunity to meet, take photos with, and get autographs from the cricket superstar. Here are just a few of the rave reviews:

Priya Ravindran gushed : “Chanderpaul is one of the coolest celebrities! Had a wonderful experience !!”
Mahadevan Vasudevan raved: “ Amazing Batsman! Amazing Personality! Nice talking to him !”

Sundaram Saminathan was thrilled: “ Was a great evening..!!!”

The President of the Gators Cricket Club, Krishna Dase was pumped, he said:

“We were honored to have an opportunity to meet Shivnarine Chanderpaul. The questions and photo sessions with him definitely boosted our players moral.

He also autographed our spring tournament t-shirts. This is so cool that not only it would help promote our cricket club at UF but also around Gainesville.”

Chanderpaul told the students of UCF and UF :

“American College Cricket has accomplished a lot of things. A lot of teams are joining and coming on board with us……its the right place, at the college level….American College Cricket is going to cause Americans to pay more attention, learn the rules and its going to grow more.”

The American College Cricket Southeast Championship will be played November 6 & 7, at the Cricket Stadium in Central Broward Regional Park.

Shiv & Krishna Dase,President of the Gators Cricket Club