Luus and South Africa team-mates help put school children through their paces
• Sune Luus was joined by Dane van Niekerk, Chloe Tryon, Ayabonga Khaka and Raisibe Ntozakhe at Grace Road for the Cricket for Good coaching clinic
• 30 pupils from Granby Primary School took park in the coaching session
• Luus said: “Cricket is an amazing team sport with so many benefits, such as improving social skills.”
South Africa all-rounder Sune Luus is hoping to inspire the next generation of children to take up cricket after putting 30 schoolchildren through their paces in Leicester.
Luus was joined by South Africa captain Dane van Niekerk, Chloe Tryon, Ayabonga Khaka, Raisibe Ntozakhe and Trisha Chetty at Grace Road to help 30 pupils from Granby Primary School learn about the game.
All competing nations in the ICC Women’s World Cup are holding ICC Cricket for Good coaching clinics, in partnership with UNICEF and Chance to Shine, in a bid to inspire more girls and boys participate in cricket.
Cricket for Good is the ICC’s global community outreach programme, aimed at leveraging the vast power and reach of cricket to transform the lives of children and families worldwide.
And after dishing out a cricketing masterclass, Luus is confident more children will now take up the sport after being taught by some of the very best women cricketers in the world.
“I think it’s a really important event,” she said.
“If we can get more children excited about the game and help them learn about the game, that should hopefully get more youngsters involved which would be awesome. Hopefully an event like today can expand the game even more in this country and transform lives.
“It has been absolutely amazing and there are almost more girls than boys here today. Everyone has been having a lot of fun and there’s been a competition between the girls and boys, to see who can bowl the fastest and who can throw the furthest so it has been amazing. Everyone has been laughing and having a good time which shows what a great sport cricket is.”
Luus was impressed with the performances of the pupils and admits there could be a star or two in the making.
She added: “It’s great to see so many girls here today playing cricket. I think England has a great group of girls at the moment and I think we could see a few stars from Granby School, which is bad for South African cricket but good for England!
“Cricket is an amazing team sport with so many benefits, such as improving social skills. It also helps children get active as well. I would tell girls and boys to give it a go because they won’t regret it.”
New Zealand is next up as it looks to help 30 more schoolchildren at Taunton, on 3 July, followed by the West Indies at the same ground next Tuesday (4th July)
Remaining Cricket for Good Coaching Clinics
Monday 3 July (13:00-14:00) – New Zealand at Taunton, Somerset
Tuesday 4 July (13:00-14:00) – West Indies at Taunton, Somerset
Friday 7 July (13:00-14:00) – Australia at County Ground, Bristol
Friday 7 July (13:00-14:00) – Sri Lanka at County Ground, Derby
Monday 10 July (13:00-14:00) – India at County Ground, Bristol
Thursday 13 July (13:00-14:00) – Pakistan at Grace Road, Leicester