Lucknow: Three prominent personalities who have made distinguished contributions to different facets of Indian cricket were felicitated by the Lucknow Sports Journalists Association (LSJA) at Ekana Stadium on Tuesday.
The special felicitation ceremony was organised during the ongoing UP T20 League, with former chief selector of the Indian cricket team Chetan Sharma, veteran cricket commentator and Padma Shri awardee Sushil Doshi, and UP T20 League Governing Council Chairman Dr Sanjay Kapoor being honoured with mementoes.
Several other personalities associated with cricket administration, commentary and sports journalism were also recognised for their contributions. Those felicitated included senior cricket commentator Anurag Srivastava, UP T20 League Governing Council member Sanjeev Kumar Singh, UPCA Media Committee Chairman Mohammad Faheem, and media coordinator Ahmad Ali Khan ‘Talib’.
Dr Sanjay Kapoor Highlights Role of Sports Journalism
Expressing his gratitude for the honour, Dr Sanjay Kapoor underlined the important role played by sports journalists in shaping the careers and public profiles of athletes.
“Along with their families and coaches, sports journalists also play an important role behind the success of players. Sports journalism takes the achievements of athletes to the public and helps give them a wider identity,” he said.
Addressing the gathering, LSJA senior vice-president Divya Nautiyal praised the Uttar Pradesh Cricket Association (UPCA) for successfully hosting the UP T20 League in Lucknow.
He described the tournament’s presence in the city as a landmark development and said the league was providing a valuable platform for young cricketers to showcase their talent.
“The UP T20 League being held in Lucknow is historic. The hard work of the UPCA team has played a major role in making the league successful. Several young and talented players are emerging through this platform and could go on to make the country proud,” Nautiyal said.
Young Talent Impresses
Nautiyal also praised the performances of players during the tournament, particularly highlighting the aggressive batting of Rinku Singh and Sameer Rizvi.
He also appreciated the performances of young cricketer Mohammad Saif and fast bowler Kartik Tyagi, saying the league was giving emerging players an opportunity to perform under competitive conditions.
LSJA secretary M. M. Arshad also commended the UPCA for organising the tournament and said the UP T20 League had created a positive and energetic cricketing atmosphere in Lucknow.
He said tournaments of this scale provide players with exposure to a major platform while contributing to the overall development of cricket in Uttar Pradesh.
The ceremony concluded with LSJA office-bearers congratulating all the personalities honoured for their contributions to cricket and sports journalism and wishing the UP T20 League continued success.
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