Bangalore: A first of its kind in Indian schools - a full fledged turf cricket ground with a lush green outfield - was inaugurated at the Jain International Residential School (JIRS) by India's legendary "little master" and International Cricket Council (ICC) match referee at the school's premises on the outskirts of the city on Monday.

"This beautiful ground makes me wonder if I should join again as a student and start playing the game all over again. I feel like batting all over again on this excellent facility and hope you make the best out of it," G R Vishwanath said in his brief inaugural speech. Laid out in the midst of the sprawling 150 acres of the JIRS premises, the facility came for praise from the Karnataka State Cricket Association president K M Ramprasad, who promised to bring national and international cricketers to the venue to promote the game. According to the Jain group chairman R Chenraj Jain, JIRS will strive to promote a sporting spirit in every student to make them better human beings. "Sports as an integral part of life can provide a physically and mentally fit person, who in turn can become an excellent human being. We shall use this facility to churn out at least three top cricketers in the next seven years," Jain said. According to International Cricket Council umpire A V Jayaprakash, who has been associated with the preparation of the turf wicket and the ground, the pitch should be fully ready for use in a month's time. "The entire facility to host big matches will be ready by March/ April. The wicket has to settle down and may take about a month. We need to play a few matches on it and it will become as good as any turf wicket in the city. The boundary too can be extended up to 70 yards," Jayaprakash told Thatscricket.com.
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Tags: cricket, indian schools, full fledged turf ground, lush green outfield, legendary "little master", international cricket council, icc match referee, premises, facility, president, national, international cricketers, venue, promote game, umpire a v jayaprakash, preparation, pitch, host big matches, settle down, matches, boundary, thatscricket.com.

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