Hyderabad Cricket Association may not host the India-Bangladesh Test; Eden Gardens put on stand-by

What’s the story?

The next assignment for the Indian Cricket Team is a three-match ODI and T20I series against England, which begins from the 15^th of January in Pune. Post that, the team will play a one-off Test against Bangladesh, scheduled between the 8^th and 12^th of February at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad.

However, the Hyderabad Cricket Association(HCA) are not in the greatest of financial situations at the moment and there could be a possibility that it may not host the Test match, owing to a lack of funds.

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The Supreme Court of India last week removed Anurag Thakur and Ajay Shirke from the President and Secretary positions of the Board of Control for Cricket in India and provided time for the former until the 19^th of January to respond to the charges labelled against him.

The heart of the matter

The secretary of the HCA Mr. John Manoj categorically said that the preparations were underway to host the Test, which will be Bangladesh’ first ever on Indian soil, and added that it was unfortunate that rumours were spread about the association not being able to host the game.

The venue has played host to a mere 3 Tests in the last seven years and its last international match was the ODI against Sri Lanka in 2014, which the hosts won by 6 wickets. India have won two of the three Tests played at the ground, while the other one finished in a draw.

The Eden Gardens in Kolkata has been put on a stand-by in case it is confirmed that Hyderabad will not be able to host the game.

What’s next?

While for the time being the focus remains on the limited-overs series against England, more clarity on the staging of the India-Bangladesh Test in Hyderabad will emerge in a few days and hopefully, it will be able to stage the game and ends its starvation for hosting an international game.

Sportskeeda’s take

Indian Cricket at the moment is making all the noises away from the field than on it and it is imperative that matters are sorted out soon between the various parties involved and the fans are not deprived of watching their favourite stars in action.