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Eden Gardens to host ICC World T20 2016 final
The final decision regarding this matter will be taken within this month.
21 July 2015 • 4:31 PM
The iconic Eden Gardens of Kolkata is arguably the most cherished cricketing venue in India. It has a huge legacy and in 2016, there is likely to be another feather in its cap. According to our ‘sources’, Eden Gradens, at this moment is likely to host the grand finale of ICC World T20 in 2016. Though the final decision is not taken yet, the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) administrators are going all out to bring this big-ticket game here.
India is scheduled to host next year’s World Twenty20 in February-March for the first time. Most likely, all matches will be played in five or six venues, and Eden is going to be one of those. Apart from the final it might also host other games, including matches involving India. Cricket fever is going to grip the ‘City of Joy’ during that period.
Talking to CricketCountry, Biswarup Dey, the treasurer of CAB and Chairman of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) Media committee also sounded very hopeful. He said, “CAB would love to host these big matches. Eden Gardens is a prime cricketing venue in India. It has already hosted big ticket matches like a World Cup final in 1987, and a Semi-Final in 1996. Currently, it has a crowd capacity of 67,000. According to me, Eden is the only option, certainly the favourites. Though this is my personal opinion.”
After Jagmohan Dalmiya took up the reins of BCCI after almost 11 years, the importance of CAB and Eden Gardens has increased. Certainly a ‘Feel-Good’ factor here is palpable. This was much needed for this cricket crazy city after long negligence during the tenures of previous board Presidents. So finally, if CAB manages to pull this off, it will be a significant achievement, not only for the administrators, but also for the fans.
The final decision regarding this matter will be taken within next month. But after assessing the mood of the CAB administrators and local media in Kolkata, it can be said that there are high chances of Eden Gardens becoming the centre of cricketing attention.
(Sandipan Banerjee is a reporter at CricketCountry. Cricket has been the biggest passion for him since his childhood. So, when it came to choosing his career, he chose to turn his passion into his profession. Apart from cricket he likes mountain trekking, river rafting, and photography. His twitter handle is @im_sandipan)