Indian community pulls together for festival

Bay of Plenty Indians cricket president Praful Morarji (right) and foundation member Diyal Dheda enjoy the New Zealand Indian Sports Association cricket tournament in Rotorua at the weekend. Photo/Ben Fraser

Rotorua's Indian community has helped pull off a successful cricket festival at Ray Boord Park.

The annual New Zealand Indian Sports Association cricket tournament was held in Rotorua at the weekend, with six teams entered from across the North Island.

Bay of Plenty Indians, the host club for the tournament, cricket president Praful Morarji said they could not have hosted the two-day event without the help of the community.

"A lot of Indian businesses in town have supported us, without their support we would not be able to host this event," he said.

Mr Morarji said it turned into a great weekend of cricket, during the long-standing tournament.

The tournament has been running since 1966 in New Zealand and is hosted by different Indian cricket clubs each year.

Bay of Plenty Indians foundation member Diyal Dheda said one of the great things about the festival was its ability to bring a lot of people together.

He said the Saturday night function at Rotorua's Gandhi Hall was a great occasion to meet all the players and supporters who travelled to Rotorua.

The Bay of Plenty Indians had never won the tournament before 2014, but picked up their first title at the weekend.