A soggy outfield, poor drainage, deplorable conditions at the Shaheed Vijay Singh Pathik Sports Complex, and appalling facilities all conspired to cause the historic first-day Test between Afghanistan and New Zealand to be called off on Monday before a ball was bowled.
The first Test between the two countries had been impacted by rain, preventing New Zealand from finishing even one practice session.
Other than a few showers during the night, Monday’s rain had minimal impact on the location. However, the lack of contemporary amenities made it difficult for the inexperienced ground crew to prepare the field, and on opening day, the sawdust sack saw more activity than the players.
Up to six inspections were carried out by the umpires during the day. Along with all-rounders Mitchell Santner and Rachin Ravindra, several other New Zealand players also stepped onto the field to inspect the conditions, including captain Tim Southee.
However, there were multiple places inside the 30-yard circle, and the mid-on and mid-wicket areas appeared to be of concern.
The match appeared to be about to start at one time when the sun was shining brightly, but that hope was scuppered at around 2pm IST when Kane Williamson stumbled onto the ground.
As the groundsmen labored, even Afghanistan’s coach Jonathan Trott appeared disappointed. For whatever reason, the Super Soppers didn’t start working until after 1pm.
At 4 p.m., the play for the day was finally canceled. Tomorrow’s toss has been rescheduled for 9 a.m., and instead of 10 a.m., there will be 98 overs per day for the next four days.
The ground crew had to use table fans to dry the field in preparation for Afghanistan’s training sessions before the Test.
The lack of contemporary amenities affected activities off the field as much as on the field itself. The location lacks sufficient fan seating as well as a media stand.
Significant annoyances for the authorized media also included a shortage of power, water, and access to a female restroom. There was no public notice system, so the fans were also in the dark about what was happening.
Between the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) and the stadium authority, there was a dearth of communication and overall mismanagement.
“We’re never coming back here because of this enormous mess. According to an ACB official, “The players are also not happy with the facilities here.”
“We had spoken with the concerned people well in advance and were assured by the stadium guys that everything will be in order (pertaining to the media facilities),” he added,
The Test is an ICC-affiliated competition even though it isn’t a part of the World Test Championship.
The Greater Noida Industrial Development Authority, which oversees the venue, held a Duleep Trophy pink ball match there in 2016.
However, because to match-fixing during corporate matches, the BCCI prohibited it in September 2017. Since then, no BCCI-affiliated match has taken place here.
Afghanistan used to use this stadium as their home field.
Nothing has altered since our arrival. Not a single bit has improved,” stated another ACB representative.
Hasmatullah Shahidi, the captain of Afghanistan, had pleaded with the BCCI and ACB to set up “a good home venue” for the squad prior to the Test.
“India is our home, and when we host teams, other nations have played more cricket here,” Shahidi said on the eve of the one-off Test against New Zealand.
“Hopefully, we will get a good venue here in India and if we restrict ourselves to one venue, it will be effective for us. Hopefully, the ACB and the BCCI will get us a good venue,” he had said.
While the stadium doesn’t fall under the UP Cricket Association, it will be interesting to see whether BCCI Vice President Rajiv Shukla gets things in order.
