Gordonians cricketing product Adi Hegde is looking forward to representing Scotland under-19 men at the upcoming World Cup Europe Qualifier.
Hegde and his teammates will fly off to Netherlands today and will play five matches between Sunday and next Saturday in a bid to make it to Sri Lanka for the big age-grade tournament next year.
Scotland will be taking on Guernsey, Jersey, Netherlands, Norway and Italy and with only the side topping the standings assured of going through it promises to be a tough and exciting competition.
“I am really looking forward to this trip,” 17-year-old Hegde said.
“Over the years I have played with a lot of the boys who are in this squad at national under-15 and 17 levels, so we have grown up together and have good friendships while training for this trip has been going well recently.
“We know that the games will come thick and fast when we are out in Netherlands, but we look forward to that challenge. We have done our homework and know what we will be up against.
“I am a left handed batter and a left arm spin bowler and I like to think that I can help the team as an all-rounder.
“I always work hard on both my batting and my bowling because if I have a bad match with one of them I can always contribute with the other and I’ll just be looking to play my part in positive results in this tournament.”
Hegde enjoying life at Meigle
So, where did Hegde’s love of cricket begin?
“My family moved to Aberdeen from Edinburgh when I was young and when we did that I joined Gordonians and I really found my love for cricket there, it is a great club,” Hegde, who has recently finished school at Robert Gordon’s College and hopes to go to university after the summer, explained.
“Over the years I played cricket at the club with my friends and at school and it became the sport that I wanted to focus on. I was lucky enough to play for the Gordonians senior teams when I was quite young and that was good experience for me and helped me learn quickly.
“I even had a chance to captain the first XI last season before moving on to Meigle this year to test myself in the Eastern Premier League.
“The people at Meigle have been so welcoming while playing against top quality teams really has helped my game and I am always learning.
“I am very grateful to have been given the opportunity to play with such a team and I am relishing every opportunity. It’s been a great experience so far.”