At this time of the year, siblings Lucas Oluoch and Martin Okoth would normally find themselves training with Nairobi Gymkhana ahead of the Nairobi Cricket League matches.
Besides, Oluoch would be coaching kids with Star Field Cricket Academy while his younger brother would be doing the same in a number of public primary schools through the East Africa Character and Development (EACDT).
But with the COVID-19 pandemic putting a pause on all cricket activities in the country and the entire world, the two players have swapped their cricket spikes for gumboots and headed back to their family farm in Alego Siaya County.
The pair, who are also housemates back in Nairobi, were quick to hit the road to the farm when local cricket season was put on hold.
The two were preparing for their NCL 50 overs match against hosts Kanbis at Eastleigh High School before the league organisers cancelled all the matches on the eve of their showdown.
“We don’t really need to go anywhere besides getting into the farm and making sure that we get enough food for our parents and a few to take to the market. So, we got out of the bubble in the city into a bit of fresh air up here,” Oluoch explained.
The transition back into farming life has been an easy one for the two but they have not stopped their cricket commitments.
They train three days a week at the nearby school, helping each other with their bowling and fielding programs.
“We do six kilometres of running every session and then do some fielding and bowling drills. I’m just happy to have someone who wants to have a kick and train at a high standard,” Okoth said.
When their training is done, there’s never a shortage of work to do on the farm.
“We got here when it was weeding time and we did a lot of that. When that was over, we realised there are daily chores that needed to be done like cleaning the cowshed and milking cows twice daily,” he said.
They have been getting a fair few questions from their teammates about life on the farm.
“There is a bit of interest because I suppose there’s a lot of guys that probably haven’t seen that side or haven’t experienced it before. I would have liked to get a group of boys up here just to show them around but unfortunately, we can’t do that,” Oluoch, who also plays for the national team, said.
