To commemorate the occasion, Caught At Point, which describes itself as a pure platform dedicated at reviving the art of proper cricket stories and journalism raised a tribute to West Indian icon by hosting a T10 (ten a side) game at Ghaziabad's lush Nehru Stadium, also known as the VVIP stadium, now fully operated by the revered VVIP Group.
This cricketing effort, however, was a two-way exercise. Not not only did it pay a tribute to the website's hero, a gallant batsman nicknamed the "Prince of Trinidad", with Lara's cut outs and intrepid fans being in attendance at the event, every participant in the match contributed funds that'll function as proceeds for a leading Delhi-based organisation working for Cancer patients.
Caught At Point, with pan-India contributors focuses not just on Indian cricket, undoubtedly the dominant discourse, but on diverse areas, some under-appreciated that do not necessarily make it to mainstream Cricket journalism in India- Proteas cricket, Blind Cricket, Associate Cricket, and of course, Windies Cricket.
Glancing at just a few of the 1,500 plus articles on the website, the website's co-founders confess, makes it amply clear that there's content on those that played in the days ahead of the Great War and the Nineties' Nostalgia and some underrated women's legends that deserve more recognition than coming their way.
Even the idea for fund-raising for Cancer comes from Caught At Point's favourite batter Brian Lara's personal life; the flamboyant batter, when 33, lost his mother Pearl to cancer, circa 2002.
"Cricket, when mixed with a cause, always evokes reaction and engages the audience," said Nitin Kumar, co-founder, Caught At Point, a man with two decades in the Advertising industry with checkered stints in India and overseas. The charming bespectacled gentleman, a creative designer, also added, "The idea (at website) is to do purposeful journalism and give that kind of content to young fans as well as those who've seen the era of Doordarshan and Sportstar Magazine that excites and catches the eye."
Adding to his colleague's vision behind the platform, Dev Tyagi, the other co-founder, shared, "While we love Lara and West Indies greatly, the idea here is to produce stories with a sense of sincerity that can capture the saga from cricket's far flung geographies we don't necessarily read a lot about, which is why a Gaby Lewis's story becomes just as interesting as that of Mandeep Singh of Afghanistan, just like it's important to know who Roberta Avery of Brazil is."
Dev, a PR Professional and a journalist, has been writing on Cricket for over a decade and also happens to be the co-founder of F1 Chronicle (founded by Jarrod Partridge). He insists true cricket writing needs to be saved at a time where much of us are being been fed junk journalism and pretty much anything that is either borderline cringe and when not, then totally concerned with sensationalism.
But on May 2 back on the field, what was fascinating was to see one of the teams being named Lara 56, captained by Prashant Kumar Banjare, not just one of Caught At Point's most cherished contributors, but a self-confessed Brian Lara -archivist. Prashant, who flew from Chattisgarh, led his team to a win and was all smiles; in the end it was a win for Lara.
Also playing the special May 2 contest, were interesting names that carry respect in the content and sports fraternity. Pranay Rangra, a podcaster and Cricket writer won hearts by collecting a special trophy handed out for his courageous journey. In 2017, the Mumbai-based Proteas fanatic and podcaster behind The Rangman Show, beat cancer.
Hariom Poswal, co-founder, North & Beyond, a Sports Management Consultancy also played the match. Poswal is working at bringing something exciting to the world of sports events, not restricted to Cricket.
Meanwhile, following live action meticulously and commentating in his trademark observant voice was the inimitable Suhaas Vedham, today a commentator that needs little introduction, the man behind beautiful storytelling with the mic who's covered countless games, both on domestic and international turfs. Suhaas's honest voice eschews a growing culture of jingoism and theatrics that perhaps inform less and fall in the fringes of loud entertainment.
Batting first, Lara 56 put on a huge 102, led brilliantly by Delhi-based cricketer Jayveer. CAP8 would fall short in the chase but not before Aditya Kumar, founder of noted sports platform KyroSports playing a valiant knock alongside entrepreneur Gaurav Shyam, a soft-talking cricket-loving denizen with business interests in Germany and Japan.
In the end, cricket was the big winner, the smiles at the post-match ceremony confirmed.
Caught At Point would like to thank all partners associated with the charity game.
There's the Hospitality Partner Red Carpet (Red Carpet Banquets on Instagram), a leading name in the NCR region where it comes to illustrious banquet halls, as beautiful and welcoming as they come.
They'd like to thank Content partners, starting with KyroSports (www.kyrosports.com), a passionate platform with in-depth video and written content on MotorSports and Cricket as well as RapidLeaks, a platform that since its inception, a decade ago, has stayed true to its Mantra: News, Views and Reviews.
Huge shout out to Design Partner TRTL, Nitin Kumar's Content, Brand Marketing platform and
Dev and Nitin would like to express gratitude to their media partners of this event What's Up Life, a new-age Digital Agency and Social Media/PR portal based in Gurgaon, founded in 2014, which has become the go-to media platform for brands across a wide spectrum, such as Realty, Luxury, F&B, Hospitality, et cetera. Pranav Trikha, a skilled professional, is championing the rise of this spectacular and credible platform.
In what lies ahead, Caught At Point reaffirms the commitment at bringing out content and events that'll inspire and entertain much like Brian Lara did.
Do follow-
Instagram: @caughtatpoint2017
@devtyagi_theiceman
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