Ashish Ranjan
The forthcoming 50-over World Cup will be contested in India for the first time ever. The showcase event will be held in ten venues across the nation. World Cup events will be held in Delhi, Dharamsala, Chennai, Kolkata, Mumbai, Pune, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, and Lucknow. On October 5, the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad will host the opening match between reigning champion England and New Zealand. On November 19, the championship match of the 10-team tournament will also take place at the Narendra Modi Stadium.
India is the nation with the most official cricket stadiums in the globe due to its cricket obsession. Consequently, a number of venues were unable to host World Cup contests. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is planning to offer these venues out-of-turn opportunities to host One-Day International (ODI) matches during India’s domestic season. BCCI secretary Jay Shah reportedly proposed that the venues hosting World Cup games would relinquish their rights to host ODI matches during India’s domestic season.
Shah informed the state entities in a letter that his proposal was unanimously approved by the ten World Cup venues.
“During our meeting, I proposed a solution to assure a fair distribution of ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 matches. With the exception of Assam and Kerala, who were assigned warm-up matches, I requested that the hosting associations forego their turn to host an ODI during the bilateral international season. This proposition was submitted in an effort to accommodate the state associations that were unable to host Cricket World Cup matches.
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According to NDTV Sports, Shah wrote in a letter, “I am pleased to inform you that the proposal received unanimous agreement and support from all participating associations.”Guwahati and Thiruvananthapuram will retain the rights to conduct matches during India’s domestic season and will host World Cup warm-up games.
India’s World Cup journey commences in Chennai
India’s initial match in the 2023 ODI World Cup will be a difficult one. On October 8, they will face the five-time world champions Australia in Chennai. India’s last ODI World Cup match against Australia occurred in the 2019 edition of the tournament. The team led by Virat Kohli won by 36 runs after setting a target of 353.
