A new year has resulted in a new venture from former India captain MS Dhoni. This time, Dhoni "wave" is set to hit Singapore on January 20 (Saturday).
Dhoni, who has retired from Tests but continues to play limited-overs cricket for India, will launch his cricket academy Singapore this month.
MS Dhoni Cricket Academy (MSDCA) will make its second overseas presence starting from January 20 in Singapore. It is an opportunity for youngsters to get trained by Dhoni and other coaches. Dhoni's first-ever cricket academy outside India was unveiled in Dubai in November 2017.
"Sports should be an essential driver for the development of a child's character. Apart from being fit, you can learn leadership and other important aspects of life via sports," said Dhoni in a statement, as quoted in Singapore media.
"Every kid should play an outdoor sport. MS Dhoni Cricket Academy is not only about producing cricket talent, but our academy's vision is to guide a kid to become a champion in life via sports," he added.
Academia7 is bringing Dhoni's academy to Singapore. It is thefranchise holder of the academy. On its website the visitors are welcomed with the tagline, "A wave is coming on January 20" with Dhoni staring in your face behind those lines.
On the same day (January 20), Dhoni will interact with fans at an event titled "In Conversation With MS Dhoni" for which "VIP" tickets (Singapore $400, S$350) are already sold out. It features "an eclectic grand evening" at the Ballroom of the Pan Pacific Hotel, according to the event's website.
"MSDCA is an institute which comes of a simple thought of 'giving back' and is completely set to transform the standard of coaching and development of cricket in India. For surviving in today's tough competition in cricket & coming out of the ordinary , MS Dhoni soon realises the importance of high class coaching facility and coaches to produce talent that will match no other," according to Aarka Sports which runs the academy.
"Established in 2014, Aarka is a leading sports management company which specializes in athlete and player management. Besides, we also provide top class consultancy. We have carved a niche in a short span of time and spread our activities to places like Lucknow, Varanasi, Bokaro, Gurugram, Bareilly etc.
"We are running several cricket academies all over India along with some foreign land and honing up the cricketing talent of the young generation, under the expert supervision of M S Dhoni. Students get the best of world class facilities at our academies which enable them to harness their potential," Aarka Sports introduces itself on its role.