With a little help from dad

The diversity of teams involved in the Under-19 World Cup offers a unique opportunity to meet journalists from different countries and gain an insight into cricket and its intricacies in various nations.

However, there were hardly any at the team hotel on Thursday and so when I saw a man with a backpack and camera at the Club Aman, where Australia were playing West Indies in a warm-up match, I labeled him as a journalist from a distance.

Turned out that I was wrong. He was Jude Rose, whose son Clive is a left-arm orthodox spinner in the Australian Under-19 squad. He’s in Malaysia following Australia’s, and Clive’s, progress in the tournament. Jude was there first but there are more coming. Fast bowler James Pattinson’s father is expected as are allrounder David King’s and captain Michael Hill’s.

Amid the attention that a tournament of this nature generates, it’s easy to forget that the players in national colours attending official functions are merely teenagers. And although there’s no substitute for team-spirit and camaraderie, having a parent not very far away can be a boost mentally, as challenges crop up during the course of the tournament.