There is a bad news for the Cricket fans in Visakhapatnam, who are eagerly waiting for the fifth ODI match between India and New Zealand. The final match of the ongoing ODI series between India and New Zealand in Visakhapatnam might have to be shifted to another venue.
This is most likely to happen as the 22 yard surface of the ground was laid four months back and due to rain, it has been inadequately prepared.
However, as per the news reports says that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has not taken a final call on the matter as of now. BCCI will have a look at the pitch on Wednesday to see if it can host the fixture.
The Indian Express quoted Andhra Cricket Association secretary G Gangaraju as saying that, “The pitch was re-laid four months back but because of the rains they couldn’t prepare it properly. The BCCI would be sending a curator/inspector, likely on Wednesday, for inspection and he will decide if the pitch is good enough to host the fifth ODI.”
However, the match would not be called off but may be shifted to another venue. Even if the BCCI curator decides that the pitch will not be fit for international cricket, the BCCI should not have any problems. Secretary Ajay Shirke believes there are plenty of other venues on stand-by.
“I’m not aware of the development. But we have many venues as stand-bys. We put at least five-six venues on the standby list at the planning stage. So it won’t be a problem at all,” Shirke said.
The pitch came under scrutiny during the Ranji Trophy match between Assam and Rajasthan, a few days ago, where it had some uneven bounce. And batting was definitely not easy where 17 wickets fell on the third day. With the BCCI having options elsewhere as well, one should not be too surprised if an alternate venue gets a chance to host the final match of the series.
