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The India High Commission (IHC) in Ghana announced that they will sponsor an Invitational T20 Top 4 Cricket tournament taking place from 19 August 20120 to 9 September 2012 at the Achimota Cricket Oval.

The IHC has stated that they expect the tournament to be held annually going forward. The Invitational has the full support by His Excellency, India High Commissioner, Mr. Rajinder Bhagat. The Invitational will be comprised of 4 top Ghanaian teams, namely Veterans Cricket Club, BGC 1 Cricket Club, Under 17 Cricket Club, and Bel Aqua Cricket Club.

Mr. Bhagat was a former Indian National Cricket Club member and played for Anritsar Punjab, which is one of the finest cricket clubs in the world. He was also a major contributor to the overall success of Mozambique Cricket in the country and hopes to replicate and translate the success he had there in Ghana.

Additionally, Mr. Bhagat is fully committed to assisting the Ghana Cricket Association (GCA) in developing the game at the grassroots level to ensure that it becomes popular among the Ghanaian youth. Mr. Bhagat believes that if cricket is taught in schools and communities it can offer the youth careers and self-discipline.

In terms of the level of competition that will be present during the Invitational starting on the 19 of August, BGC 1 finished tops at the closing of this year’s Accra T20 League after defeating fellow invitational participant Bel Aqua in the finals. Under 17 and Veterans Cricket Club finished 3^rd and fourth in the league respectively. Not only will the level of play in the Invitational be top notch, it will also serve as a beneficial warm up for members of the Ghanaian National Team who are currently preparing for two international competitions.

The Senior National Team will participate in the Pepsi ICC Global WCl Division 8 in Apia, Samoa from the 15^th-22^nd of September and will also be featured in this year’s ICC Africa Regional Division 2 Tournament in Benoni, South Africa in October.