The search is on at Edgbaston Stadium with a new regional challenge launched to find the biggest hitter of a cricket ball in club cricket.
Club cricketers are all invited to hit for six at a Selco Big Hit Challenge local heat at Attock CC – in Moseley – on Tuesday May 5 and Stratford-upon-Avon CC on Thursday May 14. The top six from each heat will then compete on the big stage at Edgbaston, during the interval of a Birmingham Bears home game in the NatWest T20 Blast.
What’s more, the winner of the Selco Big Hit Challenge will get the chance to sit in the dugout with the Birmingham Bears squad for their final NatWest T20 Blast group game on 22 July against Northamptonshire Steelbacks. The winner will also receive a pair of tickets to NatWest T20 Blast Finals Day and a shirt signed by New Zealand Captain and T20 star Brendon McCullum, who joins the Bears this summer.
Alex Perkins, T20 Project Manager at Edgbaston, said: “Who’s the biggest hitter in the club is a common debate amongst local cricket players, and we’re determined to find the answer here at Edgbaston.
The chance to join Brendon McCullum, Varun Chopra and other Birmingham Bears stars in the dugout and learn from the champions of the NatWest T20 Blast is a once in a lifetime opportunity that’s too good to miss.
The competition is open for all to enter. Players just need to enter one of the two local heats and hit the ball as far as they can without it bouncing.”
As part of the sponsorship of the Birmingham Bears NatWest T20 Blast shirt, Selco Builders Warehouse are giving participants in the Edgbaston challenge a chance to win a £500 cash prize for themselves and their club; simply by landing a ball in a target positioned in the hitting zone.
Helen Gemmell, marketing director at Selco Builders Warehouse, said: “As the official shirt sponsor to the Birmingham Bears for the Natwest T20 Blast this season, we are thrilled to have worked closely with Warwickshire CCC on the Selco Big Hit Challenge.
It is a very exciting initiative for recreational cricketers across Birmingham and is sure to attract plenty of interest.
We are also delighted to be providing a £1,000 cash prize to split between a player and their club if anyone can combine power and accuracy and hit the special target which will feature in the Selco Big Hit Challenge semi-finals and final at Edgbaston.”
The Selco Big Hit Challenge local heats at Attock CC and Stratford-upon-Avon CC get underway at 6.00pm.
Birmingham Bears start their defence of the NatWest T20 Blast at Trent Bridge on Friday May 15, with the first home game coming at Edgbaston one week later against local rivals Worcestershire Rapids.
