Srinagar: The first day of Afghanistan vs New Zealand Test Match in Greater Noida, UP was washed out due to rain and wet outfield
Apart from overnight shower, rain did not affect the venue throughout Monday. But the absence of modern facilities left the inexperienced ground staff struggling to prepare the field as the sack of saw dust saw more action than the players on the opening day.
“This is a huge mess, we are never coming back here. The players are also unhappy with the facilities here,” ACB official was quoted as saying.
“We had spoken with the concerned people well in advance and were assured by the stadium guys that everything will be in order,” he added, While the Test is not a part of the World Test Championship, it is an ICC affiliated tournament.
The stadium, managed by the Greater Noida Industrial Development Authority, had hosted a pink ball Duleep Trophy match in 2016.
However, it had been banned by the BCCI in September 2017 due to match-fixing during corporate matches. No BCCI affiliated match has been hosted here since.
The stadium has served as the home ground for Afghanistan in the past.
“Nothing has changed since we came here. It’s not improved one bit,” another ACB official said.