Venues for ICC T20 World Cup 2021 increased to 9 despite COVID: Report

The final of the T20 World Cup 2021 is set to be held at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, according to reports.

Motera stadium in a file photo. (Image credit: Twitter)
By Nilavro Ghosh | Apr 18, 2021 | 2 Min Read follow icon Follow Us

India’s coronavirus situation seems to be getting worse by the day as cases pile on, despite the emergency rollout of vaccines several months back. Cases have been skyrocketing and the country’s medical infrastructure is in serious peril of completely falling apart. Despite the fearfully unsafe situation, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) reportedly increased the number of venues to host the ICC T20 World Cup, which is scheduled to be held in India during October-November, to nine from six. The decision was taken at the virtual apex council meeting on Friday. The nine reported host cities are Mumbai, New Delhi, Chennai, Kolkata, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Dharamsala, Ahmedabad, and Lucknow.

The tournament’s semi-finals are supposed to be held at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata and the Wankhede in Mumbai. The final is set to be played in Ahmedabad’s Motera stadium, the largest cricketing venue in the world. Cities like Mumbai, Bengaluru, and New Delhi are already struggling to contain the virus, while the likes of Kolkata and Chennai are potential hotspots.

According to the report by news portal Sports Tiger, Nagpur and Mohali have been left out and in their place, Chennai, Lucknow, Ahmedabad, and Hyderabad have been added.

“The nine venues have been informed and it was again discussed that preparations should continue for the showpiece event with an eye on the COVID-19 situation and a call will only be taken closer to the event. It is too early to imagine what can or will happen in October-November with regards to the Coronavirus situation. But preparations shall be on,” sources aware of the developments said. 

COVID CHALLENGE

However, hosting the tournament can prove to be a hefty challenge for BCCI, given the coronavirus situation in the country. It is understood that the BCCI have in place, a Plan B, which they would present to the ICC should the pandemic situation in the country not improve. Reportedly, this plan would involve keeping a maximum of four venues for the whole tournament, which will be decided later on. 

India is currently the second-worst affected nation in the world due to the coronavirus, logging over 2.6 lakh new cases on Saturday and over 1,500 deaths. The country has a total caseload of 1,47,88,003. Such numbers are highly perilous for the players and the ICC might have to take some hard decisions if the situation does not improve significantly.

The BCCI had initially planned six venues for the T20 World Cup. However, after several state boards expressed their interest in hosting the competition, the BCCI reached out to the ICC over the expansion of venues.