NE SPORTS BUREAU
AHMEDABAD, MAY 1
Picture this: the organization you work for has state-of-the-art gymnasiums, yoga centres, and running tracks. Moreover, it also hosts cricket leagues, football matches, marathons, kabaddi, tennis tournaments et al. Difficult to imagine, right?
Kaptan Singh couldn’t picture it either. As a sports enthusiast, he graduated with a heavy heart thinking he won’t be able to make much time for sports once he enters the corporate world. Only 9 months into his first job and he has played in Agri Cricket League, Tennis Cricket tournament and presently he is one of the players in Fortune Fighters team in the ongoing Adani Cricket League (ACL).
It’s been more than a decade since ACL, a brainchild of the Adani Group, set foot into the cricketing sphere and its evolution has led to massive tectonic shifts in the life of employees.With a championship title on the line, Adanians put on their thinking caps to devise strategies and gather to practice at the nets. There’s a competitive spirit, but such events also let employees unwind, interact with each other, and improve inter-personal relations along with health and fitness.
Back after 2 years due to physical distancing in the pandemic world, it’s the 10th edition of ACLwhich has brought employees from across various locations of the country to their headquarters in Ahmedabad to foster a sense of camaraderie and team spirit. Keeping in pace with the IPL fever, ACL is heated up equally and features 16 teams, who are battling it out for glory for the last one month and awaiting to get crowned as the champions on April 30, 2022. Interestingly, some quality cricket is on show at the cricket ground in Adani Shantigram as some of the players have been there and done that.
Bhavesh Panchal, 36, who has been playing in ACL since its inception in 2010, avers, “Over the years, the game has made me fitter but what I have achieved additionally is bonding with so many people. By the end of each match and day, I have built a good relationship with not just my team but teams across, felt happier and charged up to achieve anything.” The league, he adds, made the team members feel like they could deal with challenging situations together, as a team.
Besides team engagement, there’s also the upside of physical exercise that helps reduce stress and channelizes energy in a positive way. The other aspect is, of course, building team spirit. “That’s valuable as it creates a ‘we’ feeling. Individuals relate to colleagues much more, get to know each other and understand other sides of you. As a newbie, it definitely helped me make friends beyond my team and feel an integral part of the company in such a short span,” says the 26-year-old Kaptan in bonhomie.
Sports not only removes prejudice, but also releases fear. It also teaches us about accepting failure; that winning and losing is part of a match as much as it’s part of life. Bipin Maheshwari, 36, has learnt important lessons of life by playing matches in the league. After losing the trophy for 3 consecutive years, his team won in 2014. He vividly remembers the day when they had to make 2 runs in 1 ball and the moment of victory. But unfortunately, they have lost the ACL trophy 2022 which seemed like an easy win to them initially. “It wasn’t our day. We lost, but my team doesn’t hold a grudge on any one player as we are a team. Even though defeat tastes sour, the support of one another makes it sweet,” shared Bipin on his way back to Mundra, “We shall be back next year—stronger, fitter and much prepared.”
