Cricket championship & us: The best of American Democracy on display in Morrisville

Editor’s note: Steve S. Rao is a Council Member At Large and Former Mayor Pro Tem for the Town of Morrisville and an Opinion Writer for WRAL Tech Wire. He served on the Board of the New American Economy, now the American Immigration Council, and on the NC League of Municipalities Race and Equity Task Force. He is a regular contributor to WRAL TechWire.

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MORRISVILLE – Last week, I shared how excited I was about Morrisville’s emergence as the Cricket Capital of the United States as we hosted the Minor League Cricket Championships. It was wonderful to see Wake County Commission Chair Sig Hutchison, and Vice Chair Shinica Thomas at the Championship game. Scott Dupree of the Greater Raleigh Sports Alliance reminded me at the Saturday matches, of the potential of exponential growth of tourism dollars and positive economic growth. He and his colleagues continue to be excited about the future of Cricket in the region.

Steve Rao

Last Sunday night, under the lights of Church Street Park and with a packed crowd in attendance, all eyes around the country and world viewed the live stream on Willow TV (and other streaming networks) of the thrilling championship game between the Seattle Thunderbolts and the Atlanta Fire. After a very exciting match, the Seattle Thunderbolts prevailed with a resounding victory and a Minor League National Championship.

During emotional remarks, Captain Harmeet Singh, reminded all of us in attendance at the Awards Presentation, how inspired he was to win a championship with teammates from around the world, who share one common love and passion, the game of cricket. His remarks led me to reflect, on how Morrisville’s cricket transformation is also the result of immigrants from all over the world bringing this global sport to the region, and what a remarkable journey our cricket transformation has been. During these often divisive and turbulent times, our Cricket journey reflects that we can celebrate both diversity and unity through sports along with seeing the best of American Democracy work in our All American City.

Community Meeting with USA Cricket
Friday, September 9
5:30-7:30 p.m.
Church Street Park Shelter, 5800 Cricket Pitch Way

The public is invited to attend a meeting with representatives from USA Cricket and Morrisville Town Council on Friday, September 9, from 5:30-7:30 p.m. at the Church Street Park Shelter (5800 Cricket Pitch Way).

This meeting will give members of the public, the Triangle Cricket League and others the opportunity to listen in and discuss matters related to cricket in the Town of Morrisville.

Only a few days after the National Tournament, the USA National Cricket Team practiced at our Church Street Park cricket facility on Labor Day weekend. Practices took place from 3-6 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, and from 12-7 p.m. on Sunday and fans came to watch Team USA practice. The team is preparing for the ICC Cricket World Cup in Papua New Guinea, which is scheduled for Sept. 11-21.

While the US team could have picked a number of places in the country to practice, they contacted our staff and made their way to Morrisville. I was honored to meet USA Cricket Coach Arun Kumar Jagdish, a number of the team members, and Jess Malhotra, a former Morrisville resident, who now is on the National Team. Both Coach Jagdish and Malhotra conveyed to me that the Church Street Park Facility is one of the best, if not the best Cricket facilities in the nation, and they do intend on coming back for another Training session.

Finally, this coming Friday evening , the USA Cricket Board is visiting Church Street Park for a community meeting on the future of Cricket in Morrisville and the region and the exciting future of the sport. The Cricket Board will be at Church Street Park Shelter for a 5:30 pm-7:30 pm Community Meeting. (5800 Cricket Pitch Way, Morrisville, NC 27560)

At the end of the day, in the Technology community, we often hear the buzzword, Digital Transformation. Well, in Morrisville and the Triangle, today, the buzz word, is Cricket Transformation.

We look forward to seeing all of you at the Cricket Capital of the United States, the Town of Morrisville, a new home to USA Cricket.

Let us continue the Cricket transformation!