CAB requests BCCI to reschedule England-Pakistan match to be held at Eden Gardens
Kolkata: The Board of Control for Cricket (BCCI) has been asked by the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) to change the date of the England vs Pakistan ODI World Cup match, which was originally slated to take place at Kolkata's Eden Gardens on November 12. November 11 has been proposed as a replacement date, reported ESPNCricinfo on Saturday.
The change occurred as a result of the city police informing CAB that they anticipate increased security for the match because Pakistan will be participating. One of the most significant Hindu festivals in the city and the surrounding area, Kalipujo, falls on November 12.
CAB officials had a meeting with city police authorities on Thursday and they were informed about the law-and-order concerns on the festive day. After that, the board wrote to BCCI secretary Jay Shah, requesting for a change in date.
The Ahmedabad police previously stated that they would be unable to provide security for the India vs. Pakistan game on October 15 because it conflicted with the first day of the nine-day Hindu festival of Navaratri, one of the most significant festivals in Gujarat, of which Ahmedabad is a part, and many other regions of northern India. The match has since been reportedly changed to October 14; however, neither the ICC nor the BCCI have made an official announcement to that effect. The game is still being played in Ahmedabad.
Shah has said that date changes for that match and for some other matches became necessary as some cricketing boards wrote to BCCI about their concerns related to travelling between the matches, which would reduce practice time.
Organising a significant religious event and a significant cricket match on the same day is not an ideal situation for Kolkata police.
The CAB is in an unfortunate position. When the last ODI World Cup was held in this region in 2011, Kolkata's famed Eden Gardens stadium was ruled inadequate to host India vs England match. Three games that did not feature India were held at the site in 2011.
It is understood that CAB officials have also contacted Mamata Banerjee, the chief minister of the state of West Bengal, in an effort to prevent the highly anticipated England vs Pakistan game from being transferred to another location. This is because the CAB and cricket fans in Kolkata would not want to be in such a position.
As per the original schedule, on October 28, Eden Gardens will host a match between Netherlands and Bangladesh. Later on October 31, they will host another Bangladesh fixture against Asian rivals Pakistan. On November 5, the stadium will host Team India in a match against South Africa. A week later on November 12, a match between England and Pakistan will take place at the iconic stadium. The second semifinal of the tournament will take place at Eden Gardens on November 16.
The changes to the schedule, just two months away from the World Cup starting from October 5, comes after the original schedule was announced in June after several delays. It was released with just 100 days to go to the tournament by ICC and BCCI. In comparison, the schedule for 2019 Cricket World Cup hosted by England and Wales and the 2015 Cricket World Cup hosted by Australia and New Zealand was released more than 12 months in advance.
The tournament will start off with a match between defending champions England taking on 2019 finalists New Zealand in Ahmedabad. No announcement about ticket sales has been made so far by BCCI and ICC.
