Boys turn any place into playing ground

BY KK MOIDU
Lack of sufficient number of playgrounds in some localities virtually compels the sportsmen to depend on residential areas as their makeshift grounds. Yarmouk area in Sharjah is one of the favourite places for amateur cricket and football players. Most of the residents in Yarmouk area belong to low and middle-income groups.
Even in the hot weather condition, the enthusiastic youngsters and teenagers play their favourite games both in the afternoon on weekends and in the evening on weekdays.
Residents of these areas are worried that some of the sportsmen are utilising the areas as their playgrounds, especially for cricket. Playing a game like cricket, the bat-and-ball sport contested by two teams in residential areas have dangerous consequences for both the families of the area, as well as the parked cars.
Shanavas living with family in this area said, "I am not against those who play cricket or any other game, but they are playing cricket in residential areas with traditional cricket ball. Many time the children were hit by the cricket ball."
"Since there is not enough players available, there won't be much people for fielding and the chances of hitting the ball on public and parked vehicles are more," says the concerned parent.
Anjana Rajan, a school student said, "We used to ride our bicycles on the surroundings in the evening. Now we are helpless, because one area is engaged by the cricket players and the other area by footballers."
"We don't have much troubles from football players. But if we enter the area where players are playing cricket, they shout at us. She had also been hit by the cricket ball several times," says Anjana.
Beena Thomas, a housewife in the area said, "She spends some time in the evening with her friends outside their building with an occasional walk, and the children play in the surroundings. One day while she was trying to stop her three-year-old son from entering the area where cricket was being played, the cricket ball knocked at her face." She explains that the ball first hit the ground and then her face, then also she suffered giddiness.
Lakshmi Govindan, who lives in the ground floor of a building said, "Several times the balls reached in the flat's balcony. The players enter the balcony and take the ball without any permission." As the flat is in the ground floor of the building, the children cannot sit inside the house peacefully in the evenings. She also said once the ball even reached the kitchen and spoiled their food. The glass window was open at that time, otherwise it would have broken the glasses of the window.
"Players remain fully concentrated in their games and they do not worry about children and cars around them," says Gangadharan, a resident of Yarmouk, by showing his car damaged by balls. Nowadays, he parks his car on the other side of the building to avoid further damages to the car. He added, "This has happened to other cars as well."