Indian cricket superstar Mahendra Singh Dhoni will inaugurate his global cricket academy overseas in the Lion City on January 20. To promote grassroots-level cricket development across the globe, the MS Dhoni Cricket Academy plans to expand in the region in the next several years.
Dhoni, who has one of the most successful records as captain of India, having won ICC trophies in all formats of the game; World Cup in 2011, World T20 in 2007 and ICC Champions trophy in 2013, led India in 331 international games, the most by any captain.
“The aim of the academy is to bring kids and adults alike to the cricketing fold and make them world class cricketers, even those that have had limited experience with the game thus far,” said Shubham Gupta, head of marketing for MS Dhoni Cricket Academy Singapore.
The academy will feature top international coaches from the region, working on a structured curriculum developed by Dhoni himself to fulfil his aim of making cricket a truly global sport. Academy centres will progressively open in Singapore, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Korea, Japan and other cities across the region.
Josh Ghosh, Managing Director of Academia7, who is involved with sports management and cricket development in Singapore and India, said, “We are very excited to bring cricket development to various schools and cricket clubs in Singapore and progressively to the rest of Asia, so more stalwarts like MS can emerge on the global scale in years to come, even from non-traditional countries.”
The MS Dhoni Cricket Academy was started in India with Aarka Sports establishing the academy first in Jharkhand. Since then, it has started operating in other cities in India, and recently opened an international academy in Dubai last month. The Singapore academy is set to continue to build on MS’s ambition to make cricket a truly global sport.
“Cricket is not just a sport; it teaches leadership, trust, determination and a lot more. MS has time and again demonstrated how cricket can positively shape personal development. MS Dhoni Cricket academy in Singapore will bring skill development beyond just the technical aspects of cricket,” said Mihir Diwakar, Managing Director of Aarka Sports. Mihir represented India at the U-19 Cricket world cup along with Yuvraj Singh and Mohammad Kaif and others before transitioning into the business aspects of sports.
There is an overwhelming response in Singapore particularly among children regarding MS Dhoni Cricket Academy. Registration for the Academy started in December and to date, more than 200 children have signed up with the academy. The academy is open to boys and girls from age six and corporate packages are also available.
Fans have also the opportunity to meet with the cricket legend MS Dhoni and hear about his journey to being one of the greatest sportsmen in the subcontinent can get tickets to 'In Conversation with MS Dhoni'.
They will also get the chance to win autographed memorabilia while exclusive items from Dhoni’s record-breaking career will also be available at the auction held that evening. Response to 'In Conversation with MS Dhoni' has been overwhelming and fans are encouraged to get their tickets early at www.apactix.com.
