The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) Vice President Rajeev Shukla rushed to the security of the Green Park Stadium in Kanpur.
India The National Cricket Team is currently struggling Bangladesh National Cricket Team at Green Park Stadium. On Day 1, only 35 overs were possible due to rain, wet pitch and poor light.
Meanwhile, things took a turn for the worse on Day 2 as the city was washed away by rain all day. Day 3 was even worse as it did not rain during the scheduled hours of play teams they could not start the proceedings due to the humid outer area.
Although several checks were carried out by the match officials, after a long delay, it was decided to postpone the 3rd day as well. This did not go down well with many fans and pundits who protested the Board of Control for Cricket in India for holding a Test match at the Green Park Stadium despite the ground not having very good drainage facilities.
However, Rajeev Shukla defended the Green Park Stadium as a Test venue, saying Kanpur was among BCCI’s original six Test centers and they wanted it to host a big game.
Speaking to reporters on Monday, Shukla said, as quoted by ESPNCricinfo, “Well, criticism is something we are used to in cricket under the management of the BCCI. But everything is criticised.”
“When we didn’t give the match to Kanpur (for certain reasons), then I was also criticized. Now we give the match and I am still criticized why it was given to Kanpur. It goes on.
“You know the problem is that this place is almost 80 years old. This is our heritage ground. If you remember, it used to be a permanent Test centre. The original six permanent Test centers were Kolkata, Chennai, Delhi, Bangalore, Mumbai and Kanpur. This is the permanent center. So the whole idea was to hold test matches here. It is the first time in 80 years that it has rained so much that we could not play the match in two days,” added Rajeev Shukla.
History shows that no match has been missed here in Kanpur – Rajeev Shukla
Rajeev Shukla further said that the Kanpur stadium is one of the oldest stadiums in the country and when it was built, the proper technologies were not available, so the facilities at the Green Park are not up to par. He also admitted that there is a need to improve the facilities at the venue.
“History shows that no match has been missed here in Kanpur. There are many places in the world where matches are abandoned due to rains. So if a match cannot be played here in two days, I don’t play. I think there should be a lot of hue and cry,” he said. Shukla.
“When this ground was built and the stadium was built, those technologies were not available. Now the technologies are available. We have that technology as we have in our Lucknow stadium. And we are building another stadium in Varanasi. There. We have high-tech, modern technology to capture rainwater.
“We are planning here as well. Today I discussed with the administration how we can develop this system through which rainwater can be dried immediately,” said Rajeev Shukla.
Rajeev Shukla further stated that he has already held discussions with government officials about the stadium and they have said that improvements are needed.
“As soon as I came here, I had a long discussion with government officials, because this stadium belongs to the government. We agree with them,” said Rajeev Shukla.
“So now for that, the ground has to be excavated, new technology has to be applied and everything has to be done. So, right after I got here, I discussed with the authorities and they are in the same position and I think we will be able to improve the conditions here very soon.
“Sometimes it happens, but even though we all pray to Lord Indra (rain god) for rain, you know, it happens. And it happens all over the world. So why is Kanpur and Green Park being blamed unnecessarily. What nature is in the hands of?”
