The dream of Ian Martin, head of Disability Cricket of England and Wales Cricket Board, has finally came true as International Committee of the Red Cross is set to launch a five-nation cricket tournament for the physically challenged people. Martin, who is regarded as one of the pioneers to introduce cricket among disables in England as well as in the world community, had been waiting long for this moment with his battery-charged wheel chair.
Coming to Dhaka last November to have a meeting with the ICRC for promoting cricket among disable cricketers in Bangladesh was his first step towards working through his long cherished goal.
‘I dreamed it would happen sometime,’ said Martin. ‘When I came to Bangladesh last, we planted the seed of this tournament. I would like to thank ICRC and BCB for making my dream come true,’ he said.
Unlike many others, Martin was not born disable rather he was like any other boy till 18 years trying his luck at club level cricket before the genetic disorder led him to disability.
But it could not end his desire to compete.
Martin’s motivation to be active in order to pursue his dream of changing the life style of the disable people was clearly exposed through his determined action when he climbed the stair of BCB academy through sheer perseverance with the help of his two team-mates.
He could neither stand nor walk but the zeal to come up against all odds was hardly diminished until he reached his wheelchair.
‘There is no choice,’ said Martin. ‘You have to have the mental strength or else you won’t survive,’ he said.
Martin started playing disability cricket in England in 2000. It came as a surprise when he saw an advertisement in paper where they wanted cricketers with physical disability.
Martin went there and found that his head and eyes still worked but his feet could not get into the right position to allow him playing shots.
‘I kept falling over,’ he said. It made me realise that if I am going to play cricket, I am going to play it in a wheelchair. So I adapted going through wheelchair and started playing in that manner,’ he said.
Martin said that he has no regret with his disability and often laughs off when he is treated differently by common people.
‘To me it doesn’t matter, if you have the stigma about my disability. It’s your problem not mine.
‘I have a disability that is physical and if you stigmatise me you have a disability that is mental,’ he said.
-With New Age input
