‘Largest Cricket Bat’ bid for Guinness World Record
United Arab Emirates’ (UAE) cricket team sponsor OSN, pay Television network in Middle East, is eyeing a Guinness World Record bid for ‘World’s Largest Cricket bat.’
The giant cricket bat, 32 metres long and four metres wide, was unveiled by OSN which is sure to create a stir not only in UAE but also worldwide ahead of the 2015 Cricket World Cup, starting from February 14th to March 29th, 2015 in Australia and New Zealand.
According to a report by EMIRATES 24/7, Hamad Malik, Chief Marketing Officer of OSN said, “What we wanted to do was just before World Cup starts and just before the UAE national team goes for the World Cup to Australia and New Zealand, we wanted to do an activity where we could engage UAE cricket fans and give them an opportunity to come here and say something to the UAE team. So that is what this activity is about. The objective of this is to demonstrate our passion for cricket and wish the UAE good luck in the upcoming ICC World Cup tournament.’
The ‘Largest Cricket Bat’ would take a player about 52.8 metres tall to hold as it weighs 950 kgs and is 32 times longer than a normal cricket bat. When horizontally measured, the bat’s length is the same to the distance of seven cars parked bumper to bumper.
The Dubai Sports City will display the bat at the ICC Academy until the end of March.
Paul Franks, UAE’s assistant coach said, “I’ve never seen a bat that big in my life. I think it’s a fantastic idea… very novel, very different. It will be nice for the people who come down to the (ICC) Global Academy to be able to sign it and almost leave a little mark and wish for the team. It’s very nice… something the guys will appreciate.”
The enthusiastic cricket fans from UAE will be able to write a message on the bat, expressing their support for the UAE National Cricket Team before the team leaves for Australia and New Zealand.
Khurram Khan, UAE’s premier batsman said, “It’s a very good way to start obviously and to send the team to the World Cup.”
“It’s very exciting” added UAE captain Mohammed Tauqir.
OSN is the official sponsor of the UAE National Cricket Teams, and also holds exclusive broadcast rights for the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015.
Happy with the unveiling of the bat, Malik heaped praise saying, “The unveiling of the ‘World’s Largest Cricket Bat’ is more than a symbolic gesture. It is our tribute to the world of cricket, while also celebrating OSN’s exclusive telecast rights of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015. It also puts the spotlight on the UAE and the steady strides it has made in international cricket.”
“The giant bat will add to the pride of the UAE in its steadfast commitment to promoting the game in the region. As the home of cricket, OSN is also saluting the UAE National Men’s Cricket Team as they take on international teams at the ICC Cricket World Cup, and we will bring all the action live and exclusively for fans across the region,” quipped Malik.
UAE will face Ireland on February 25th, India on February 28th, Pakistan on March 4th and South Africa on March 12th as OSN is slated to telecast all the matches of the national team.