NICK FRIEND: Representatives from Middlesex, Kent and Essex observed as the South Asian Cricket Academy trained on Friday, with interest from several clubs in some of the players on the scheme
Representatives from three counties were present on Friday (February 3) at a showcase day for the South Asian Cricket Academy as the scheme – heading into its second year – continues to offer opportunities to players without professional contracts.
As well as looking to correct the underrepresentation of British South Asian players in the domestic game, the scheme – which considers itself a temporary intervention programme and seeks to attract players over the age of 18 – is inadvertently filling a void left by the disbanding of the MCCU and MCC Young Cricketers programmes, both of which previously funnelled late developers or players otherwise lost to the system.
Middlesex director of cricket Alan Coleman, Kent head coach Matt Walker and Essex academy chief Barry Hyam were among those on-site at Leyton Cricket Ground's indoor school in northeast London, casting an eye and taking notes on a group of players that included former Leicestershire batters Hassan Azad and Aadil Ali, as well as one-time Pakistan A opener Jaahid Ali.
Kent head coach Matt Walker attended a SACA showcase day [Getty Images]
Catering for players let go by academies has meant that SACA, who have beaten several county second teams in the last 18 months, are effectively working with players old enough to challenge for first-team places straight away.
Jaahid, for example, is a 27-year-old with a List A hundred against an England Lions attack featuring Mark Wood, the Curran brothers and Saqib Mahmood. He is playing his cricket for a club in north London, having played for Middlesex at age-group level before moving back to Pakistan, where he was born, at 17.
So, there is a willingness from scouts and coaches to look at players on the SACA platform, which has Moeen Ali as its president and was co-founded by Tom Brown, who has spent the last five years researching the shortage of British South Asian players and coaches progressing into the professional game.
One county representative watching on pointed to the constant need for quality, ready-to-go seamers, particularly in this era of jam-packed schedules and unsustainable workloads, meaning there is not necessarily an upper age limit on the kind of players that clubs are after.
Zaman Akhter, 23, a tall right-armer who ended last season playing for Essex's second team, is one of several who have attracted significant interest.
Zen Malik, a top-order batter who once held a Worcestershire summer contract, is another who has caught the eye, while former England Under-19 allrounder Amrit Basra spent some of last summer with Kent's second string.
SACA was launched to improve representation of South Asian cricketers in the pro ranks [supplied]
Meanwhile, a group of players have been provided with a shared house in Birmingham to allow them to train regularly with SACA at Edgbaston. Shortly before Christmas, The Cricketer observed another session, this time at Bristol, with the programme looking to make itself easily accessible across more of the country.
This latest showcase day follows on from Yorkshire's signing of Jafer Chohan, the leg-spinner who was at one stage on Middlesex's academy. Jafer was the fourth SACA graduate to sign with a first-class county, following in the footsteps of Kashif Ali, Andy Umeed and Zain-ul-Hassan, who are now with Worcestershire, Somerset and Glamorgan, respectively.
Shaftab Khalid, the former Worcestershire bowler who later coached at SACA, became the first coaching graduate late last year when Warwickshire added him to their backroom staff.
The Cricketer understands that two further SACA coaches, who have been working with the scheme in Scotland, are set to be appointed to coaching roles within Scotland's age-group pathway structure.
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