A cricket academy has opened at Sister Nivedita University in Action Area 1. Two concrete pitches were recently unveiled as part of the academy’s infrastructure. And the good news for cricket-loving neighbours is that the university authorities plan to let outsiders play.

The facility was recently inaugurated by former Bengal captain and national selector Sambaran Banerjee.

“Now our university students will get to hone their skills in cricket. Even local children can play here,” said Satyam Roychowdhury, chancellor of the Techno India Group-run university, who is also the group’s managing director. “Sambaran da has held cricket workshops for our students in several of the 22 branches of Techno India Group Public School. He will be the chief mentor here,” he added.

Sambaran Banerjee, chief guest at the opening of the cricket academy, plays a defensive stroke as Sister Nivedita University chancellor Satyam Roychowdhury keeps wicket.

The university has set aside two time slots for its own students — 7.30am to 10.30am and 4.30pm to 6pm. “Outsiders will be allowed to attend coaching and play in the hours in between when our students would have classes to attend. We are also planning to let corporate bodies use the facility. They are interested in playing in the evening hours. There are plans to install floodlights,” said registrar Suman Chatterjee. Outsiders will have to register for an annual fee of Rs 500. The rain, however, is delaying the opening of the facility to players from outside. “We are getting a lot of enquiries. Once the rains subside, we will let them in, hopefully before Puja,” Chatterjee said.

Football facilities will be introduced in due course on the campus, while basketball infrastructure is ready for classes to begin. “We have a sports quota through which budding sporting talent, like school or district-level champions, can apply and get free education. For technical courses, they will need to score beyond the cut-off marks set by the respective regulatory authorities. The Bar Council of India, for instance, has set 45 per cent in Class XII Board exams as the minimum aggregate required to study law courses,” said the registrar.

The university, which offers a three-year Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) course in sports management, might have a girls’ cricket team too if there is enough participation.

“There are sports schools in countries like Australia where sports and studies get equal importance but in India it is a rarity. Training on campus will save the time that is spent in travelling to coaching camps,” said coach Sayan Bhowmik.

The university team will compete in inter-university tournaments and also play with other TIG college teams.