KOCHI: A campaign demanding the Kerala Cricket Association (KCA) shift the venue of the India-West Indies ODI in November from the Jawaharlal Nehru International Stadium in Kochi, and thereby avoid damaging the new grass turf, gained considerable steam on social media on Monday.The playing surface was renovated as part of the Rs 25-crore worth of refurbishment at the stadium ahead of the 2017 FIFA Under-17 World Cup. However, if the KCA decides to host the ODI there, the turf will have to be dug up to lay the cricket pitch.
Footballers, including Kerala Blasters' Iain Hume and Vineeth C K, as well as celebrities like Shashi Tharoor MP and writer N S Madhavan reacted to the development after fans of the Kochi-based ISL club started the social media campaign using the hashtag #SaveKochiTurf. Hume posted on Instagram: "I was here for ISL 1 when they had 6-8 weeks to transform our field from a cricket to a football ground. They made great strides in doing so, but it was still some way off from being a field for top level football. The amount of time and money that has been spent since then to get the pitch to the standard it is now for the U-17 World Cup and ISL, it would be a travesty to tear it up for a one off cricket match."
Hume, as well as Blasters fans, wondered why the KCA were resolute in hosting the ODI in Kochi when the Greenfield International Stadium in Thiruvananthapuram, which had hosted the India-New Zealand T20I last November, was available. "There's a ground in Trivandrum that is cricket specific. So why for the sake of one match rip up a pitch that has taken years to get to the standard as one of the best in the country?" the Canadian questioned.
India international Vineeth also blasted the move. "I believe that for sports to co-exist, it is important that they do not stop each other from growing. A lot of time, effort and money have gone into the football pitch at the JN Stadium. The stadium is one of only six in India that are approved by FIFA, a certification that will take immense effort and countless permissions to obtain again," Vineeth posted."When India has always been known for being a 'cricket crazy' nation, is it really necessary to dig up a football pitch to play a cricket match?" he wrote.
"Give the match to Trivandrum or get drop-in pitches, if viable. Stop vandalism," tweeted N S Madhavan.
Meanwhile, Tharoor took up the matter with the BCCI Committee of Administrators chief Vinod Rai. "Spoke to CoA Chief Vinod Rai to denounce KCA's bizarre decision to transfer the India-WI ODI from a match-ready Trivandrum to Kochi whose ground was last used for the U-17 Football World Cup. He has promised to review the matter. KCA motives highly suspect," Tharoor tweeted.