Windhoek — Bank Windhoek this week donated N$90 000 towards the 2010 ladies cricket league which kick-off this September and runs until November.

The sponsorship is aimed at enhancing and developing ladies cricket in Namibia, through a partnership between the bank and Cricket Namibia. The Bank Windhoek Ladies Cricket League will create more opportunities for existing and aspiring female cricket players to improve their performance and open up more doors towards more competitive games locally, and preparation to compete internationally.

Speaking at a media briefing that was held at the Wanderers sport club in Windhoek on Wednesday, senior manager: marketing and corporate communication services at Bank Windhoek, Marlize Horn said the involvement of women in various sports is vital to the growth of any sport code.

According to Horn, through this sponsorship, Bank Windhoek is contributing to the development and growth of local women's cricket by supporting cricket Namibia. "Bank Windhoek's sponsorship of the Bank Windhoek Namibia Ladies Cricket League is not only to encourage personal growth but also sportsmanship and team work in pursuit of reaching a common goal amongst female cricket players.

"Additionally, the bank sponsorship aims to give a hand to cricket Namibia in its pursuit to develop women's cricket. This will be to increase female participation in all of the game and also to encourage more women to take up coaching, umpiring and scoring course. Bank Windhoek would like to see a growth in the numbers of spectators to women's cricket games," Horn said.

She added that the number of girls and women pursuing sports such as cricket, football and even rugby has been growing rapidly. She said that her bank believe that all people should be given the opportunities to advance themselves "and we encourage them to reach their optimum performance in any chosen sports code".

Horn said without support for girls and women, reaching the levels of excellence in their chosen sport becomes an obstacle, especially in sports like cricket, and sooner or later players abandon these dreams.

She said that cricket offers qualities which are not only beneficial to the game, but to the overall personal developments of the players.

President of Cricket Namibia, Francois Erasmus said during a national survey conducted in March 2009, schools indicated that 745 girls play mini-cricket and 38 are involved in junior cricket in Namibia.

"This gives the indication that there has been a growth in interest by girls and women, due to awareness of the game and cricket having become more accessible to them.

"With the sponsorship from Bank Windhoek, Cricket Namibia will be able to further promote the game through the Bank Windhoek Ladies Cricket League and leverage more support and interest from girls and women," Erasmus said.

Six teams have registered for the 2010 league: Moria Primary School, Tsumeb Gymnasium, Windhoek Afrikaans Private School, Windhoek Gymnasium Private School, Windhoek High School and Pro-Ed.