Mohammad Azharuddin said the Board of Control for Cricket in India zeroed in on Hyderabad as one of the 8 venues for hosting the T20 World Cup in 2021 after “much persuasion”.’
Former India captain and the president of Hyderabad Cricket Association (HCA) expressed delight as the Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium in the city was reportedly chosen as one of the venues for the T20 World Cup, which is scheduled to be held in India in October-November this year.
Mohammad Azharuddin Delighted That Hyderabad Will Host Some Games Of T20I World Cup
Hyderabad, which has hosted 6 ODIs and 5 T20Is so far, will be hosting a match from the ICC event for the first time if the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) finalises the venues. According to the Press Trust of India, the Indian cricket board has zeroed in on 8 venues for the T20 World Cup after their apex council meeting.
While Ahmedabad’s Narendra Modi Stadium has been picked to host the final of the T20 World Cup, the other venues are Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Bangalore, Hyderabad, and Dharamsala. Mohammad Azharuddin, taking to Twitter on Saturday, said Hyderabad was picked as one of the venues after “much persuasion.
“Great news that Hyderabad will host some of the ICC World #T20 games. After much persuasion Hyderabad has been selected as a venue for the ICC game for the very first time,” Mohammad Azharuddin wrote on social media.
Notably, Mohammad Azharuddin was not happy when Hyderabad was left out as one of the venues for IPL 2021. However, the BCCI reportedly picked Hyderabad and Lucknow as backup venues due to the alarming Covid-19 situation in India.
BCCI Sorted Visa Issue Of Pakistan Cricket Team
Meanwhile, the Pakistan cricket team, led by Babar Azam, will have no difficulty in travelling to India for the ICC T20 World Cup in October as the government is set to grant visas to the players from the neighbouring nation. It has been learnt that BCCI secretary Jay Shah has informed the Apex Council about the government’s decision on giving visas to the Pakistan players.
“The visa issue of Pakistan cricket team has been sorted. However whether the fans can travel across the border to watch matches is still not clear,” an Apex Council member told PTI.
The rising cases of COVID-19 in India have raised concerns for BCCI for the ICC T20I World Cup 2021. However, BCCI chief Sourav Ganguly is confident that BCCI will be successful to host the tournament. ICC T20I World Cup was earlier scheduled to be conducted last year in 2020 in Australia.
Meanwhile, the Pakistan cricket team will have no issues travelling to India for ICC T20I World Cup 2021. The government is set to issue visas to Pakistan cricketers. However, whether the Pakistan cricket fans can travel to India to attend matches of ICC T20I World Cup 2021 is still not clear.