Prime spot, singer and spouse pitch cricket tent

Express News Service
KOCHI: 45 cents by the aspect of the nationwide freeway in Kochi would qualify as prime property by any yardstick. Options would seem aplenty for a worthwhile enterprise. What does the proprietor do? Begins a cricket academy. With indoor apply amenities. While the choice would seem unusual to many, the title of the centre – AKME – reveals the emotional join.

Parvathy, the property proprietor, and husband Vivek Anand have been decided that no matter they do with the land at their disposal must be in step with her late father’s humanitarian pursuits. And AKME SpoArts was born, in reminiscence of A Ok Muralidharan Elayadom, a businessman, who handed away in 2005 in a highway accident.

“He was into a lot of social activities. In tune with his spirit, we wanted to do something that would be useful for others too,” Parvathy instructed TNIE.Revenue was not a precedence for the couple as they sat right down to finalise the main points of the centre, drawn by their widespread pursuits in design and building. “The adjacent plot was sold for Rs 50 lakh per cent. But we are not doing this to make money,” mentioned Vivek, a violinist and playback singer.

Why cricket? “That’s my passion,” the husband mentioned. “When I suggested the idea of a cricket training facility, Parvathy was supportive as it would offer a chance for children to channel their energy in a productive way.” 

Space for cricketers to chill out and revel in

Built at a value of Rs 87 lakh, the indoor ‘nets’ has three wickets with enough house for bowlers’ run-up. Flood lights allow night time periods whereas the synthetic turf imported from New Zealand and laid on a cement base affords a fair bounce. “This is a space for cricketers where they can enjoy their training sessions and feel relaxed as well. The play area has been designed according to the specifications of the indoor cricket federation. I visited many facilities overseas to identify what we needed to do here,” Vivek mentioned.

 “We also wanted parents accompanying children to feel relaxed while spending time here,” mentioned Parvathy. They have introduced in former Kerala cricketer and coach P Balachandran because the chief coach, assisted by former Kerala captain Sony Cheruvathoor and his teammate C Sanju. “We now have 16 regular trainees and enquiries keep coming in,” mentioned Vivek. With the Covid protocol in place, they’ve capped the variety of trainees per batch to 21, at seven gamers at every web. 

“We are conducting two sessions three days a week – Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday — between 2.30 pm and 4.30 pm. Once, the pandemic situation clears up, we plan to turn AKME into a full-fledged academy,” he mentioned. The facility was inaugurated on September 11 by former India quick bowler and the present Kerala coach Tinu Yohannan. The centre is attracting loads of cricket fanatics who ebook hourly periods each morning and night.