DeKalb | NIU’s new cricket club is working to reach out to students while preparing for a national championship in the spring.

The team, made of club members, played its first three games in September. Two were against Iowa State University, and another against the College of Wooster. After winning two out of the three games, NIU’s cricket team was selected to participate in the national championship in Florida. The team, which has the university’s temporary recognition, will head there during spring break.

Team captain Sreekarr Yallapragada, graduate computer science student, started the club after finding out about American College Cricket, an organization that arranges cricket games between schools.

While the team is preparing for the national championship, Yallapragada and his teammates also want to focus on sharing the sport with other students. Yallapragada said cricket is mostly popular outside the United States, but the cricket team wants to help build a fan-base for it on campus.

“We have so many international students that I think this would be a good platform for interaction,” Yallapragada said.

Yallapragada hopes that after filing with the Student Association for full recognition, the cricket club will have space to practice and possibly organize internal tournaments for students here at NIU. He also would like the team to host demos and informational sessions to show those unfamiliar with cricket what the sport is like.

Initial feedback from students has been positive, Yallapragada said. Team members Shushanth Gudi and Raghuvaran Sriram, graduate industrial systems engineering students, believe the club will appeal to international students. The team especially wants to reach out to undergraduate students who can stay with cricket in the years to come. Sriram agreed and said anyone who is interested is welcome to try out.

Another long-term goal for the team is to someday set up a practice area for the cricket players who will hopefully come after them, Gudi said. Gudi, Sriram and Yallapragada are all optimistic about the cricket’s club future at NIU.

“Someday we could even have a big event like homecoming, with NIU students cheering the team on,” Gudi said.