In pictures: Cricket gear donation brings joy to migrants stuck in Bosnia

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In pictures: Cricket gear donation brings joy to migrants stuck in Bosnia

Dozens of teenagers and young men put their daily struggles aside for a game of cricket

Published: May 22, 2021 12:32 AP and compiled by Balaram Menon, Senior Web Editor

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Copy of Migration_Bosnia_Cricket_10560.jpg-3e510-1621671206583 — Sarajevo, Bosnia-Herzegovina: Joyful cheers echoed through an asylum-seekers camp in Bosnia this week as dozens of teenagers and young men put their daily struggles aside for a game of cricket. Image Credit: AP

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Copy of Migration_Bosnia_Cricket_83436.jpg-50db9-1621671162506 — Players absorbed in the match ran over an improvised pitch clutching wooden bats or throwing balls. Others supported the teams by clapping from the side, their faces radiant. Image Credit: AP

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Copy of Migration_Bosnia_Cricket_05729.jpg-8bfc9-1621671219684 — Migrants celebrate holding cricket gear after it arrived in Blazuj migrant camp in Bosnia's capital of Sarajevo. Image Credit: AP

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Copy of Migration_Bosnia_Cricket_89815.jpg-28c04-1621671201739 — "It was a good game!" Sifet, an asylum-seeker from Afghanistan, said. "Tomorrow we have the final tournament!" Mohammad Jahanzeb, who is from Pakistan, chimed in. Image Credit: AP

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Copy of Migration_Bosnia_Cricket_03813.jpg-cafd7-1621671215868 — Andrea Costa, president of the Baobab Experience association, told the Associated Press that activists got the idea from the asylum-seekers themselves, particularly those coming from Pakistan, Bangladesh or India, where cricket is a national sport. Image Credit: AP

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Copy of Migration_Bosnia_Cricket_42656.jpg-e59e5-1621671211788 — Thousands of people fleeing war and poverty in the Middle East, Africa or Asia have been stranded for months, if not years, in Bosnia while waiting for a chance to move toward Western Europe. From Bosnia, migrants try first to cross to neighboring European Union nation Croatia, before continuing on toward wealthier EU countries. Image Credit: AP

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Copy of Migration_Bosnia_Cricket_12563.jpg-9ebbc-1621671224187 — Migrants carry cricket gear after it arrived in Blazuj migrant camp in Bosnia's capital of Sarajevo Wednesday, May 19, 2021. The Rome-based Baobab Experience group brought cricket equipment for the migrants in the Blazuj camp and also the central town of Tuzla, offering a rare opportunity for relaxation and fun for the people who spend months, if not years, stuck in camps while fleeing war and poverty in their nations and chasing their dreams of a better future. (AP Photo/Kemal Softic) Image Credit: AP

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Copy of Migration_Bosnia_Cricket_89304.jpg-063a0-1621671198305 — "Speaking with many young people ... it came naturally to ask them what they were missing the most, what would they want," Costa said. "Exactly as an Italian boy would ask for a football, to play some football, they say they are missing cricket." Image Credit: AP

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Copy of Migration_Bosnia_Cricket_58511.jpg-b3525-1621671171125 — Ali Cheema, a former cricketer from Pakistan, plays a shot during a game of cricket played by migrants in Tuzla, Bosnia. Image Credit: AP

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Copy of Migration_Bosnia_Cricket_65981.jpg-30999-1621671175664 — Costa and his team drove to Bosnia after collecting donations from the UK, Indian and Pakistani embassies in Rome and those countries' communities in Italy, Costa said. Along with Sarajevo, gear was delivered to the central Bosnian town of Tuzla. Image Credit: AP

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Copy of Migration_Bosnia_Cricket_66941.jpg-81753-1621671194343 — "Our next step with the cricket will be going back to Italy, going back to Europe, and saying that the migrants were very happy," Costa said. Image Credit: AP

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Copy of Migration_Bosnia_Cricket_19807.jpg-b8b3b-1621671166907 — Among those who waited eagerly for the packages to arrive was Ali Cheema (pictured), who said he started playing cricket when he was 7 and used to play for several clubs in his native Pakistan. Image Credit: AP

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Copy of Migration_Bosnia_Cricket_34641.jpg-a18ca-1621671187360 — Now 24, Cheema has been in Bosnia for two years. As the car carrying the cricket equipment pulled over in Tuzla, he was there to open the bags filled with bats, poles, gloves, jerseys and caps. Image Credit: AP

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Copy of Migration_Bosnia_Cricket_39034.jpg-cde3b-1621671190846 — "We are going to play a cricket match as soon as possible," he said, explaining that previously "we cut some wood" to make bats. A day later, Cheema and his friends could be seen practicing on a playground in Tuzla. Image Credit: AP

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Copy of Migration_Bosnia_Cricket_34435.jpg-de158-1621671184457 — "I decided to go from Pakistan to follow my dreams," Cheema said. "I would like to go to England and continue to play cricket, because I was a cricket player in Pakistan and I didn't get enough opportunity." Image Credit: AP

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Copy of Migration_Bosnia_Cricket_76081.jpg-5c5a2-1621671180648 — Costa said his organization plans to do more to help the young foreigners in Bosnia migrants get engaged in sports and "pass the day with the things that they like." Image Credit: AP

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Copy of Migration_Bosnia_Cricket_73501.jpg-b63ec-1621671157531 — "First of all, we believe it is their right to reach their goal, that it is their right to reach Europe," Costa said. "And second of all, our organization thinks that since while they are transiting these countries, every effort has to be done to help them feel welcome and stay in good condition. Image Credit: AP

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Copy of Migration_Bosnia_Cricket_25671.jpg-b626f-1621671153569 — Migrants prepare to play cricket in Blazuj migrant camp in Bosnia's capital of Sarajevo. Image Credit: AP

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