Merlin Group & YSCE confer full scholarship on ‘young cricket prodigy’

Kolkata: The Yuvraj Singh Centre of Excellence (YSCE) and the Merlin Group have conferred a full scholarship on Rishika Sarkar, a three-and-a-half-year-old cricket prodigy, at Merlin Rise, to support her “exceptional cricketing talent”.

An issued statement said that the cricket icon and official brand ambassador of the ICC T20 Men’s World Cup, Yuvraj Singh and the real estate conglomerate, Merlin Group announced the scholarship. Rishika’s talent was spotted while she practised with her father in New Town.

Yuvraj Singh said that YSCE will support her training at the high-performance training centre. Singh sent Rishika a miniature cricket bat with his signature as a memento.

Saket Mohta, MD of Merlin Group, said: “We are extremely delighted to support the child prodigy Rishika Sarkar in her training. We also commit to undertaking the responsibility of her education. Currently, Merlin Rise already has a residential training facility for boys. Our residential training for girls will start soon, and we can accommodate Rishika then, allowing her to stay here as well. At Merlin Rise, we are committed to developing young sporting talents. I wish Rishika all the very best.”

The statement read, YSCE will provide Rishika training three days a week to assess her performance and needs.

Merlin Group will also identify a school nearby her locality to admit her and will bear all the costs of her education.