New Delhi: India cricketer Gautam Gambhir today launched a cricket portal www.criclan.com, that is introducing National School League (NSL). As the name National School League suggests, it is a tournament where school children can participate on a larger scale, play at cricketing venues where international cricket or first-class cricket takes place and may be take a step towards realizing their dream of playing at the highest level.

National School League (NSL) will be played across four metros – Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Bengaluru. In all, 80 schools will be participating with 20 from each of the four cities. In the first phase, the schools will compete in T20 format with 350 matches being played to determine the winning team which will take home Rs 3 lacs for its victorious efforts. First match of the tournament will be played between Pathways World School and Scottish High International School on 15th June, 2013 in Gurgaon. The final of the tournament will be played in Delhi in the last week of August 2013. Along the way the teams would have contested at Test grounds, stadiums and other cricketing venues.


The T20 tournament is just the appetiser to the main course of the tournament involving two-day matches. The two-day matches amongst schools are being organized to ensure that young players value the longer format. These matches have been dubbed National Schools League – Tests. “We want to create that platform but without disturbing the basic fabric of the sport in our country. While we want to create platform for the youngster but we don’t want to do it necessarily through the T20 format. It will come through NSL - Tests,” said the heart and mind behind Criclan.com, Dhruv Verma.


Gautam Gambhir supported Dhruv on this. Launching NSL, Gautam said: “It is one thing pushing cricket in a particular age-group but it is something else to push the right aspect of cricket in that age-group. I am glad Criclan is doing that. India needs cricketers of substance.”


Gambhir’s urge to have “cricketers of substance” has been taken a step further by Criclan. In a bid to have a more well-rounded individuals,
Criclan also declared the spirit-charter that all schools will have to sign before they play in this tournament. “Spirit-Charter teaches them to not only respect the game more but also the opposition. We thought it was the need of the hour,” said Dhruv.