KATHMANDU: Gloucestershire second XI and batting coach Owen Dawkins recently took his coaching to Nepal, taking the helm of a strong 13 man squad as part of the first MCC Legacy Tour.
The tour was introduced by the MCC into its overseas touring program aimed at leaving a sustainable and meaningful impact on developing cricket nations.
Included in the side was captain experienced side with Jimmy Adams who just retired at Hampshire with over 14,000 runs, Derbyshire captain Billy Godleman who made over 1000 Championship runs in 2019 and Tom Westley who recently played for England.
Coach Dawkins discussed the experience for young Gloucestershire opener Miles Hammond, “It was a fantastic opportunity for him to learn from those guys and spend time with those experienced three batsmen. It was also a fantastic chance for Miles to experience a different culture and play in a different environment. From a bowling perspective, it was also great for him to be able to bowl in turning conditions.”
As part of the tour, the MCC played in all three formats of the game. With crowds over 3000 watching on, the MCC squad received amazing support with fans asking for pictures and wanting to interact with the players. There was huge media interest, with newspapers and TV covering each game.
It was a busy schedule for the team away from the field, but Coach Dawkins also said it was an amazing experience, “We had the opportunity to fly around Mt Everest which was amazing. We saw a lot of temples and went to a cultural evening with local traditional dancing, as well as socializing and mixing with the opposition and administrators from Nepal cricket to get an understanding of where the game is at.
We also spent two days coaching 350 kids at a local school which was fascinating. Trying to coach in challenging conditions with lots of kids with the local players was brilliant. We were there to celebrate the opening of new nets that have been built by the MCC Foundation. It was a great experience trying to coach that many kids, they had so much enthusiasm and just wanted to play and hit balls.
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