DHAKA, Nov. 10 (Xinhua) -- Fifteen Chinese young cricketers are training here to promote their cricket skills and prepare for the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) U-19 Challenge Cup to be held in Bangkok in December this year.

    The Chinese cricketers started their training course in Bangladesh Sports Institute, around 30 kms north of capital Dhaka. They have one hour English class each day from Sunday to Wednesday and 4-hour field training each day from Saturday to Thursday. The whole course will last five weeks.

    Aminul Islam, the organizer of the training program and also Cricket Development Officer of ACC, told Xinhua on Tuesday the training program has two targets, one is to improve the boys' English, the other is to improve their cricket level.

    Islam is the former captain of Bangladesh national cricket team. When asked why the Chinese cricketers were brought to Bangladesh for training, he said the main purpose is to promote the friendly relationship between China and Bangladesh.

    "China has helped Bangladesh in many ways. We are ahead of China in cricket, so we want to do something for China. Helping Chinese cricketers improve their level is such a good chance," Islam said.

    Three Chinese coaches also came to Bangladesh to join the training program. Their task is to copy the training method of Bangladeshi cricket coaches and bring it back to China.

    Liu Pingping, a Chinese cricket coach, said it is a good opportunity for them to come to Bangladesh to learn how to coach cricket.

    "The Bangladeshi coaches are teaching very carefully. I believe we will benefit a lot from the training program," he said.

    Masud Hasan, the head coach of the training program, said the Chinese players are making progress day by day.

    Pakistani Rashid Khan, head coach of the Chinese national cricket team, came to see the Chinese players in the Bangladesh Sports Institute on Tuesday. Khan told Xinhua though Chinese cricket started late, its future is bright.

    The Chinese boys very much cherish the opportunity to learn cricket in Bangladesh. They hope their skills will be improved a lot when the training course concludes and they will have good performances in the ACC U-19 Challenge Cup.

    Zhang Yufei, a player from Beijing, said he likes the environment for playing cricket in Bangladesh. "I have got a lot from the training course. My skills in throwing, batting and defending all have been improved," he said.

    Ai Di, a player from Shenyang, said he has also learned a lot in Bangladesh. "If I can get trained for one or two more months, I will make more progress."

    According to Islam, China started to develop cricket in 2005. They are doing well in cricket now. "China is a great country, without China, cricket can't become a global game," he said.

    Among the 15 Chinese cricket players, 3 are from Bejing, 6 from Shenyang, 6 from Zhejiang. The youngest player is 13 years old.