ICC to have benefit matches for AIDS cause

The International Cricket Council (ICC) has lined up opportunities for cricketers from all cricket playing nations to contribute to the cause of HIV/AIDS.

To start with, the cricketing body, in association with UNICEF and UNAIDS, would dedicate one of the matches in the ongoing Champions Trophy in the country to the cause of HIV/AIDS with other benefit matches being planned in the near future.

"Captain Rahul Dravid and his team have shown enthusiasm to play around four matches and appear for benefit events to aid the cause before the World Cup in the West Indies, " said Corinne Woods, chief communications officer, UNICEF-India.

The Indian team is also likely to play benefit matches in South Africa and Zimbabwe sometime this year, she added.

UNICEF-India has been roping in celebrities to give better voice to their campaigns this year. Prominent volunteers include Amitabh Bachchan, Jackie Shroff and Jyotiraditya Scindia.

Its tie-up with Indian cricketers through ICC has been a significant step in the fight for the disease in India owing to their god-like popularity, said Woods.

The latest UNAIDS report has put the number of people living with HIV/AIDS in India at 5.7 million, of which women account for 38 per cent. The incidence of parent-to-child transmission has jumped from 2.7 per cent to 3. 5 per cent in just one year.

In Ahmedabad, where the South African team has been put up for the Champions trophy, a rendezvous between the team and children affected with HIV/ AIDS was arranged which saw cricketers Shaun Pollock, Jonty Rhodes, Andrew Hall, and A B De Villiers tie 'Suraksha Bandhans' on the children's wrists as a mark to take up their cause.

The cricketers also had an informal cricket coaching session with the children where Shaun Pollock spoke of the team's resolve to do their bit in dispelling the myths surrounding HIV/AIDS.