CAL officials hope to get back hosting rights of a Ranji match
Even after being denied the hosting rights of a Ranji Trophy match on alleged ‘flimsy’ grounds by the UP Cricket Association, the Cricket Association Lucknow seems hopeful to get the match soon.
CAL authorities, including its secretary KM Khan, have launched preparations on a war footing at the Dr Akhilesh Das Stadium here. “Within the next 10 days, everything will be alright here after which we will request the UPCA to shift one of the Ranji Trophy matches to Lucknow from Kanpur,” Khan told HT on Tuesday.
He, however, confirmed that UPCA’s pitch and ground committee officials have already visited the venue, and the work on top dressing of the pitch and its surrounding areas would soon be completed. The UPCA just last week refused a Ranji Trophy match to the CAL, terming the playing conditions at the Das stadium ‘unfit’, but allocated a Under- 23 CK Nayudu Trophy match. Das stadium is the second best centre after Green Park, which is the only Test centre in the state.
Interestingly, despite several shortcomings in terms of the playing conditions set by the Board of Control for Cricket in India at many of its centres, the UPCA has allotted matches to them.
According to the pitch and ground committee reports of the UPCA (which are in possession of HT) its centres in Ghaziabad, Moradabad and Agra also don’t meet the standards, but they have been allotted matches, including Ranji Trophy this season. The UPCA, on the other hand, has allotted an Under-23 category CK Nayudu Trophy match to Das Stadium.
“It’s a mockery of the BCCI’s policy for the conduct of the matches. If a ground or playing conditions don’t meet the BCCI standards, no board matches, including Under-16 can be conducted at the venue,” a member of BCCI’s pitch and ground committee told HT on condition of anonymity. “It is interesting that they have allowed the same venue to host another board trophy match.”
“There are minor problems in the pitch that can be rectified, after which Das stadium will become a perfect venue for a Ranji Trophy match in UP,” he added.
In fact the grass at the stadium, which has hosted Ranji Trophy and other board matches for the last 10 years, wasn’t pruned properly when match referee S Sarath reached the venue for the match between UP and Baroda last year. “The UPCA had told us not to cut the grass on our own as they were sending a specialist for this, but he didn’t turn up on time,” Cricket Association Lucknow’s secretary KM Khan told HT . “The grass was levelled before the start of the match for which the match referee even appreciated our efforts. However, he had already sent an adverse report to the board by that time,” added Khan.
Defending UPCA’s decision of not allotting a match to Lucknow stadium, UPCA secretary Rajeev Shukla said Das stadium has had problems from the very beginning and UPCA had conducted its own
INTERESTINGLY, DESPITE SEVERAL SHORTCOMINGS IN TERMS OF THE PLAYING CONDITIONS SET BY THE BOARD OF CONTROL FOR CRICKET IN INDIA AT MANY OF ITS CENTRES, THE UPCA HAS ALLOTTED MATCHES TO THEM
enquiry about the playing conditions there even before taking a decision in this regard.
“Despite the problem, we are giving them a match every year, but this time the report was not good,” said Shukla, adding, “We have given them an Under-23 match and that match can be adjusted there. If the match referee was satisfied at the time of the match last season, he should have sent a second report about the playing conditions to the board, which he didn’t.”