Cricket tournament comes to Brunswick

BRUNSWICK — Teams played cricket in a tournament at the Brunswick Recreation Center on Sunday, and the Brunswick community was invited to watch and cheer them on. Navadeep Gadela described cricket as a "fun sport" that is played using a hard ball and a bat. It can be played indoors and outdoors. "When we play cricket, there are two innings, so each team will play one inning," he said. "It is not like baseball. You get to bat, you score runs, and then the next team who gets to bat has to score one run above you." Cricket is also a growing and emerging sport, Gadela said. For instance, the United States hosted an international cricket tournament a few years ago to help spread the sport in America. "The International Cricket Council, they are investing a lot," he said. "You will see a lot of Asian people play cricket, a lot of Englishmen and a lot of Australians play cricket. Now you will see more Americans start to play cricket too with those investments going around." Indian restaurant Khaao Macha, which is inside Market 42 in Brunswick, helped bring the cricket tournament to the city. Sixteen teams took part in Sunday's event, and each team comprised eight players, Gadela said. Teams came from different parts of the Cleveland area and the Columbus region. "During the winter, we tend to have one or two tournaments," he said. "This time we organized it so in the summers, starting from June every Saturday, there will be some tournament happening around Cleveland on baseball fields." Gadela described the experience at the Brunswick Rec Center as "wonderful." "The supporting staff were so helpful to us," he said. "The parking was good, the weather was a little bit bad, but people turned up really well." Contact reporter Madisyn Woodring at (330) 721-4049 or mwoodring@medina-gazette.com.