Slowly but surely — and despite a lack of pitch and gears — cricket is gaining ground with youth in
Indonesia.

In Ciawi, Bogor, West Java, the sport was introduced by a cricket enthusiast who had the humble aim of creating a sport league for local children.

“I’m a retiree who simply [wanted] to do something good for the youngsters in my neighborhood. We are not changing the world. We’re just having a bit of fun,” Robert Baldwin said.

Baldwin, a New Zealander who has lived in retirement in Ciawi for 10 years, helped to found a school cricket league in Bogor in 2006.

The cricket league was initially comprised of six junior high schools. Today, the league organizes matches from August to November each year, and caters to both boys and girls from 20 schools near Bogor and Puncak.

Baldwin said that cricket was not very popular with Indonesians, who were more avid fans of soccer or badminton. However, the sport has been warmly welcomed by people in Bogor.

“Schoolteachers in Bogor are not cricket players, but they all want to give their kids a chance in life. They are very supportive,” Baldwin said.

The educators immediately welcomed the cricketers because the schools lacked sports leagues and athletic programs, save for occasional Independence Day tournaments, Baldwin said.

“The kids play in the nets three to four days a week. It’s solid progress.”

Expats living in Bali have also set up nets and welcomed local children to try some hits, Baldwin said.
Baldwin said that limited facilities and equipment were the sport’s greatest challenges in Indonesia.

Equipment had been donated to the schools, and the league and coaches have been sponsored by companies such as Rolls Royce and Starbucks.

Baldwin said that he was optimistic and would continue to march on. He was planning a series of
programs with support from the embassies of Australia and New Zealand.

The Graham Yallop Oval will open at the Pancawati International Sports Park, West Java, on Sunday. Named after famous Australian cricket team captains from the 1970s, the oval will be the first turf wicket park in Java.

It will become a center for developing Indonesian cricket, Baldwin said.

It would host cricket coaching sessions for young players. Australia’s most successful fast-bowler Glenn McGrath and Australia’s former top cricketers, Jeff Thomson and Graham Yallop, will also coach young players at Cibubur field in East Jakarta on Friday, he said..

“[Young players] seem to be really enjoying it. Some of the young players are pretty good. They have a lot of potential. I’m impressed,” McGrath said.

“Teamwork is what I love most about cricket. I’m never bored,” 17-year-old Andre Siahaan said.

Andre was a member of Indonesia’s U19 national team, which beat Japan in 2009 in the Asia-Pacific qualifying match for cricket’s world cup in Papua New Guinea. The team’s fourth-place was also the first time an Indonesian cricket team representing won a match abroad.

Andre said he idolized Sachin Tendulkar, who was India’s greatest batsmen and known for his small stature.

Anna Victoria Rahardjo, a 15-year-old student from Bogor, said that she started to play cricket last year.

“Cricket is an exercise in concentrating on the ball. I don’t move a lot, like when I play soccer, but I still sweat,” said Vicky.

Baldwin, who is also an adviser to the Bogor Cricket Association, said that he hoped to form the Indonesia Cricket Association, under the aegis of the National Sports Council.

“Cricket in Indonesia is like a baby who is still lying in bed: kicking — but not yet crawling or walking,” he added.

“We’re making slow-but-steady progress.”

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