http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Delhi-c780 given green signal to host World Cup games
The Feroz Shah Kotla ground in New Delhi, which was banned by the International Cricket Council for producing a sub-standard pitch last year, has been cleared to host international games again. The ICC’s clearance means that the ground will now be allowed
to host the World Cup games next year. Delhi hosts four World Cup games in the 2011 edition to be played in the sub-continent.
Andy Atkinson, the ICC's pitch consultant, had a good look at the way the wicket at the Feroz Shah Kotla behaved during the Ranji Trophy matches and decided the green signal could be given.
The Kotla was in the news for the wrong reasons after the Champions League T20 last year saw some sub-standard T20 tracks produced for the tournament. The pitches did not allow much bounce and most of the deliveries passed between the ankle and the knees of
the batsmen. However, matters came to head during an http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Sri-Lanka-c758 ODI late last year, when the track showed enough unevenness in bounce for the ICC match referee to abandon the game. It was the second time that an ODI was abandoned in India due to
dangerous pitch conditions.
Now the Delhi cricket association has decided not to allow too much use of the track before the start of the World Cup. According to Venkat Sundaram, the chairman of the BCCI's grounds and wickets committee, "We want to keep the wicket in good shape, so [we
thought] why not move the Ranji games to other grounds that are available."
The cricket World Cup begins from February 19 next year and will see Delhi host the four games as follows: http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Kenya-c752 and India v Netherlands. It will not host any knock-out game.
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