Royals Sports Group-owned franchise Rajasthan Royals on Tuesday announced the launch of an Academy in Pune, expanding its footprint in the state of Maharashtra, and thereby solidifying its commitment to nurturing young cricketing talent.
The grand inauguration took place at the Prakash Tingre Ground, Dhanori and was led by Royals’ Global Head of Academy Coaching Mr. Siddhartha Lahiri, Rajasthan Royals’ Chief Business Officer Mr. Alok Chitre, Maharashtra Cricket Association COO Mr. Ajinkya Joshi, JusCricket Academy Mentor & Owner of MPL franchise Solapur Royals Mr. Kapil Baheti, and JusCricket Academy Director and former Royals’ player Mr. Parag More.
“We are delighted to be expanding our presence in the state of Maharashtra with the launch of RR Academy Pune. Our objective through the academies is to create an ecosystem which promotes the accelerated development of the young talent that is present not just in Rajasthan but around the country. Through this association, we are looking forward to expanding the Royals coaching philosophy which aids in the development of both – the kids and the coaches,” Siddhartha Lahiri, Royals’ Global Head of Academy Coaching said.
The facilities at the JusCricket Academy in Pune will become the newest addition to the growing Royals’ Academy ecosystem, and will be rebranded as the Rajasthan Royals Academy, Pune. The launch on Tuesday saw Mr. Lahiri conduct a captivating coaches’ session which offered insights into the “Royals Way” of playing cricket. Coaches were also treated to a masterclass, learning about the behind-the-scenes work that goes at the Royals, and how it can help fast-track the development of the cricketing talent.
The newest addition to the Royals’ Academy ecosystem is equipped with a full-sized cricket ground, along with natural and Astroturf wickets, ensuring availability and access to the state-of-the-art cricketing facility for budding cricketers round the year. The RR Academy Pune will also aid in the development of local internal coaches already serving at the facility, and equip them with the right knowledge and skill-set which can be passed onto the kids.
Given the franchise’s expertise of grooming talent and providing them with a platform to perform – of which Yashasvi Jaiswal, Dhruv Jurel and Riyan Parag are recent examples – a major focus of the RR Academy Pune will be to inculcate the renowned Royals philosophy into the coaching techniques being imparted to the kids.
The talent enrolled at the RR Academy Pune will also have the opportunities to take part in RRA-organised tournaments around the world, get feedback from the Royals’ expert coaches and visit and get trained at the franchise’s High Performance Center in Nagpur.