BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — Cricket may not be the leading sport in Western New York, but it is booming in the Buffalo area, and one local organizer is working to make it even bigger.
Maruf Hussain is one of those running the first-ever summer cricket clinic in the city - a free program teaching kids ages 8 through 16 how to play the sport on the fields of South Buffalo Charter School.
Hussain came to Buffalo in 2016 and helped start one of the first cricket teams in the city. Usually played on a field, Hussain had to make do with the UB parking lot.
"We didn't even have a ground [field]. But now there's at least six grounds in Buffalo-Niagara Falls area and at least 20 teams," Hussain explained.
WATCH: Cricket clinic teaches kids in Buffalo how to play the growing sport
That boom happened largely because of the arrival of those from South Asia to the Queen City, coming from countries such as Bangladesh, India and Pakistan where cricket is already popular. The clinic is designed to welcome newcomers to the team sport, which shares some similarities with baseball.
"If you don't know about cricket, this is the perfect place that you wanna come, you wanna learn, you wanna enjoy," Hussain said. "That's the main goal - to bring the community together and teach something new."
There are already 15 kids signed up for the first workshop Thursday, and there are more clinics planned throughout the summer. Upcoming dates can be found on NextGen Cricket Clinic's social media accounts.
