Turf war might stump Kerala’s dream to host Test cricket

KOCHI: The ongoing shouting match between cricket and football over the hosting of a One Day International match between India and West Indies, in the middle of what would be Kerala Blasters FC’s 2018-19 Indian Super League (ISL) football season, could cost the city its long cherished dream of becoming a Test cricket venue.

It is no secret that hosting a Test match in Kerala has been a long-standing ambition of the Kerala Cricket Association (KCA) and inking a deal to lease the Jawaharlal Nehru International Stadium in Kochi for a period of 30 years from the Greater Cochin Development Authority in 2013 was part of fulfilling one of the criteria required to do so.

“One of the regulations to accord Test status was that the venue had to be under the state association for a minimum 30-year lease period. So, this is the first step towards securing the status. Now it is up to the BCCI to decide whether to give Kochi Test matches,” the then KCA president T C Mathew had said after striking the deal.

This coupled with the BCCI’s policy to take the five-day game which was losing popularity in larger cities like New Delhi and Mumbai to smaller cities, including Indore, Dharamshala, Pune and Rajkot, also was working in favour of Kaloor stadium.

KCA secretary Jayesh Geroge said the association has been expecting the BCCI to award a Test match to Kerala in 2019. However, the authorities now fear the confusion over the stadium, if it continues, will be detrimental to Kerala’s chances of hosting a Test cricket match anytime soon.

“For a venue to host a Test match, it has to go through a series of intense scrutiny before getting the nod from the BCCI. So, this situation between cricket and football is not ideal and might have a negative effect while BCCI considers Kochi as a venue for five-day international matches,” said KCA president Ronklin John.

“The Kochi stadium has hosted several international matches already and has been modified to suit Test cricket. But that is not really the case with the Greenfield International Stadium in Karivattom which is a new venue,” said Ronklin. Jayesh, meanwhile, said a lot of money has to be invested to convert the Thiruvananthapuram stadium into a Test venue.

“The playing area at Greenfield Stadium is open and no grills or gates have been installed. Also, there is a need to construct player pavilions and VIP cubicles which will require more money to be invested and approvals from the BCCI and ICC,” said Jayesh.