/ 31 January 2011

Bangalore set to replace Calcutta as World Cup venue

The Indian cricket board has nominated Bangalore’s Chinnaswamy Stadium as a replacement venue for the World Cup match between India and England on February 27 that was originally to be played at Calcutta’s Eden Gardens.

The Eden Gardens was last week ruled out as a venue for the match because of delays in construction work at the stadium. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) was asked to suggest an alternate venue for the group B match.

BCCI secretary Narainswamy Srinivasan said in a statement Monday that “the BCCI has recommended Bangalore as the alternate venue”.

The Eden Gardens is also scheduled to host three other matches — South Africa vs Ireland on March 15, Netherlands vs Ireland on March 18 and Zimbabwe vs Kenya on March 20.

An International Cricket Council (ICC) inspection team is expected to make another visit to Eden Gardens next week before it decides whether it will be able to host the remaining three matches.

“The first match may not take place there but the rest of the three matches could have a chance if the requirements are fulfilled,” ICC president Sharad Pawar said in New Delhi on Sunday.

“We have written to BCCI regarding this. I spoke to BCCI president Shashank Manohar to get the stadium ready so that other matches are staged there,” he said. — Sapa-AP