University renews partnership that is ‘changing the face of English cricket’

Birmingham City University has renewed its groundbreaking partnership with South Asian Cricket Academy (SACA).

The new three-year partnership address the stark under-representation of British South Asian males in the professional game.

Despite making up around 30 per cent of recreational cricketers in England and Wales, British South Asians accounted for just 4 per cent of professional male players at the start of the 2020s.

Established in 2022 by Dr Tom Brown, a former BCU PhD student, SACA has become one of sport’s most compelling success stories, offering British South Asian cricketers long-overdue access to professional opportunities in the game.

Dr Brown, a former Warwickshire County Cricket Club pathway coach who now serves as SACA’s general manager, said: “It couldn’t have happened without BCU,” 

“Sixteen players have come through SACA to play first-class cricket. Jafer Chohan was playing club cricket three years ago. Now he’s in England squads. It’s like a Hollywood film.

“The numbers and representation are getting better. The number of South Asian cricketers in first-class cricket has doubled in the past three years since SACA was launched.

 “Our goal was to get one player a year on a professional contract - we’ve got 16 in three-and-a-half years, among them Jafer and Zaman Akhter, who has played for England Lions.”

SACA’s impressive work has drawn the attention of England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), sparking important conversations about equity and inclusion in the sport’s talent systems.

Dr Brown continued: “We’ve proved the point that talent is being missed – that is undeniable,” 

“The game used to have this mentality that if you weren’t signed to professional terms by the age of 18, you were never going to be good enough.

 “We’ve helped demonstrate that this is not the case, that talent travels in different ways.”

“Funding is key. We are a non-profit organisation, so it is up to the funders to decide how long we go for.”

Professor Adam Kelly, Professor of Sport and Exercise at BCU and a global expert in talent development, believes the partnership is incredibly valuable.

He said: “It was a bold move by BCU to invest in SACA in its early days, but that decision has truly paid off - it’s helped drive real change. 

“When we launched SACA, our ambition was to develop one professional player each year. The fact that 16 players have already progressed to first-class cricket in three years is phenomenal.”

 Professor David Mba, BCU Vice-Chancellor, believes the “best is yet to come”.

 He said: “This partnership with SACA reflects everything we stand for at BCU - using research, education, and community engagement to break down barriers and drive meaningful change.

“We’re incredibly proud to support an initiative that is not only transforming lives but also challenging and reshaping the way English cricket discovers and nurtures talent.

“The progress so far has been extraordinary - and we believe the best is yet to come.”

That new initiative, backed by the BCU Research for Athlete and Youth Sport Development (RAYSD) Lab and supported by the ECB, is focused on creating more inclusive talent pathways, with a strong emphasis on supporting girls and young women.

Two PhD students are at the heart of the project: Omar Green, a former primary school teacher now coaching at Surrey CCC, and Hina Shafi, co-owner of Luton Women and Girls Cricket Club and a director at Cricket East.

Hina’s research has already highlighted major underrepresentation of South Asian and Black female cricketers within the ECB’s talent systems.

Her findings, shared with the ECB, are helping shape future policies and initiatives.

 Pictured from left to right: Hina Shafi, Professor Adam Kelly, Dr Tom Brown and Omar Green.