Cricket in USA at last?

Sachin in USA at last?

Last month the ICC formally recognized the USA Cricket Association (USACA) ..... again and with that (hopefully) all the internal wrangling and mud slinging has come to an end. USACA is working with India on playing some matches in New York, Texas, Chicago, California and woohoo......... South Florida. With the Indian team doing so well in one dayers, I can't wait to get a glimpse of them in action.

The US has a large South Asian expatriate population that is mostly doing well financially. South Asians love cricket. So cricket in USA should be taking off bigtime right?
To quote my favorite ESPN analyst (and former FSU alum), Lee Corso, "Not so fast, my friend!".
From cricinfo.com(1),(2):

Nine days ago there was a meeting in Dallas which was vital to the future of cricket in the USA. Coming at the end of a year of bitter infighting which has left the game's reputation in the US in tatters overseas, some would argue it was the most important meeting in the USA Cricket Association's history. And yet, almost nobody turned up.......................................

This part blows me away. You would think in one of the most sports crazy country and also the most technologically advanced country, you would at least have a decent website. The website looks like something a 5 year old would throw together.

...............The USACA has undertaken what I assume to be a deliberate policy of silence for almost a year. No events or explanations have been made to stakeholders, all information has had to come from third parties, and the board has been, in my view, utterly incompetent in its responsibilities to keep its own members informed.

In this day and age, a website is the first source of disseminating information, as well as the quickest and cheapest. The USACA claims that it has been having trouble with the site. Earlier in the year it said the URL had been "hijacked". But the refusal to maintain what most small clubs would accept as a decent site has been atypical of the board's reluctance - almost refusal - to share information. Anyone who runs a website would attest to the ease of adding a few basic details. Indeed, the USACA managed to update other information in the meantime. But the EGM was not deemed important enough. And, nine days on, there is not even a brief resume of what happened - or rather, didn't happen.

The story of the USACA from last year reads like a textbook on Bureaucracy 101.

Those who were at the meeting - and there weren't even enough directors to enable a board meeting to be held - say that there were useful discussions. So useful that the USACA has not let anyone know what happened. But whatever was mulled over, nothing agreed was binding and, given the USACA's track record, there must be grave suspicions that talk will not result in actions.

Are desis alone to blame for this mess? Certainly not! USACA is made up of members originating from South Asia, the Gulf, The Queen's boys, Down Under, South Africa and the Carribean. But among the above mentioned, desis form the largest contingent and with our history for internal squabbling and apathy, we are certainly need to take out share of the blame. All said and done, I hope Cricket in the USA takes off in a big way with the 2007 World Cup in the Carribean.