BCCI was in quite of embarr(–foul word(s) removed–)ment when it was announced that ICC has removed Eden Gardens as on of the host in cricket world cup match particularly between India and England that will commence on February 27. The ICC’s inspection team, which had some of the leading experts in the field of stadium and ground preparation, observed that Eden Gardens would not be ready in time.
And surprisingly No alternate venue for that match has yet been announced. The Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai and the 3 World Cup stadiums in Sri Lanka were all given the green light by the ICC.
The ICC chief executive Haroon Lorgat said that it’s a regret that Eden Gardens hasn’t made enough progress to clarify the level of confidence which was required to confirm that this venue is going to be ready before the match scheduled to play on it, he further said that this wasn’t easy to decide and unfortunately, it is absolutely important. The CAB is having an urgent meeting to briefly discuss the remaining development.
Kolkata was to host 3 other games in the World Cup 2011, but the status of those games is still in doubt. An ICC spokesperson said that At this stage no one has decided on those matches. The India vs England match was the only chance for die-hard fans in Kolkata to see the home team.
Board of Control for Cricket in India’s president Shashank Manohar said that there wasn’t any sort of need for the BCCI to call any urgent meeting, but emphasized that he would consult his “office bearers” to finalize the venue for the match. It is observed that Bangalore seem to be a favorite. An ICC source said that there are 99% chances that it will going to be Bangalore.
The announcement of switching the game from Kolkata came just two days after the tournament director, Ratnakar Shetty, waved away worries over preparation of World Cup venues. Media personnel had been barred from a recent inspection of Eden Gardens.
Lorgat said that The Central Organizing Committee had already provided all venues with a strict deadline of 30th of November 2010 in order to complete all constructions and then to be prepared for match before 1st January 2011. He further said that extra days were added to the deadline by the ICC for five of Asian venues, which were re-inspected over the past week. And sadly “Eden Gardens” didn’t meet the final extended deadline date of 25th January 2011.
The ICC has yet to finalize over the issue of announcing new venue for the India vs England match. Shetty said that they will work with the new venue, the operators of tour and the ticket distributors will manage the logistical challenges that will definitely arise.