Bengal’s budding cricketers coming from an underprivileged background would be given annual sponsorship © Getty Images (Representational Image)
Kolkata: Bengal’s budding cricketers coming from an underprivileged background would be given annual sponsorship, which will not only help them pursue their goal but also support them in education, founder MD of Specialty Restaurants Limited Anjan Chatterjee said. Having tasted success with their academy in association with former Ranji Trophy winning Bengal captain Sambaran Banerjee that won a double title last season, the owner of ‘Mainland China’ chain of restaurants, Chatterjee today announced the launch of the scolarship. The ‘Mainland Sambaran Scolarship’ will handpick 11 cricketers, so as to form a ‘team’, to begin with for the programme, Chatterjee said. Virat Kohli, Ravichandran Ashwin and other cricketers to be nominated for Arjuna Award
“We want to reach out to the budding cricketers across the districts who are not part of our academy. Beside training them free of cost, we will also support them in their education, transport,” he told reporters. Chatterjee said the budding cricketers in the U-14 age group just need to contact their administrative cell at the Mainland Sambaran Cricket Academy. In a first, the MSCA had won the Cricket Association of Bengal’s U-14 and U-17 tournaments as the triumphant teams were felicitated by senior cricketers Laxmi Ratan Shukla and Manoj Tiwary. Rohit Sharma nominated for Arjuna Award ahead of Sri Lanka Test series