June 6, 2021
2 mins read

Oman Cricket in talks with BCCI to host T20 WC matches

Oman is one of 16 participating nations at this year’s T20 World Cup and cricket in the country is run entirely by a business conglomerate…reports Asian Lite News

International Cricket Council (ICC) and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) are in talks with Oman Cricket over hosting of some of the T20 World Cup matches later this year in the gulf nation, a top Oman Cricket official has confirmed.

The ICC had, earlier this week, given BCCI a month’s time to show its readiness to host the tournament in October-November. With India’s chances to host it unlikely due to an expected third wave of Covid-19 pandemic, and things not improving drastically over the last few days, the world body has started to look at a venue besides United Arab Emirates (UAE) which is already on standby.

“We have been approached by ICC and the chairman of Oman Cricket, Pankaj Khimji, is in talks with the BCCI which is due to host the tournament,” Madhu Jesrani, the Oman Cricket secretary, said from Muscat.

“The talks with BCCI have just started. The ICC asked us for certain things that they are looking at in a hosting venue and we have given them the details. We have told them that we are ready. We have two turf pitch grounds, including one with floodlights,” added Jesrani.

Oman is one of 16 participating nations at this year’s T20 World Cup and cricket in the country is run entirely by a business conglomerate, Khimji Ramdas, which is an Indian-origin business family.

Jesrani said both the grounds are inside Muscat.

“The Al Amerat Cricket Stadium has floodlights and it is 15-20 km from the airport,” he added.

The ground was established in 2012 and has hosted ICC’s lower-division matches.

The BCCI has already announced that the remaining Indian Premier League (IPL) matches will be held in the UAE from mid-September to mid-October, which is the time when the T20 World Cup will start.

While there are concerns the pitches at the three UAE venues won’t last two tournaments (76 matches in total), the burden would be eased by shifting some games to another country like Oman.

On Tuesday, the ICC issued a statement saying, “The ICC Board has requested management [to] focus its planning efforts for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2021 on the event being staged in the UAE with the possibility of including another venue in the Middle East.”

Jesrani says they will wait until June 28 when ICC’s deadline to BCCI expires.

“We are waiting till June 28 when the ICC deadline ends and a final decision will be made,” he said.

ALSO READ: Russian Fm due in Saudi, Qatar

Previous Story

UK Minister warns against ‘Delta’ variant

Next Story

UAE expands clean energy sector in record time

Latest from Arab News

GCC condemns Israeli airstrikes in Syria

GCC SG Jasem Mohamed Albudaiwi affirmed that these airstrikes represent a continuation of efforts by the Israeli occupation forces to undermine and destabilise regional and international security Secretary General of the Gulf

Trump due in Saudi, UAE amid new tariffs

The GCC bloc, which includes the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Kuwait, Qatar, and Bahrain, has been hit with a 10% tariff, placing them among the lower-tiered rates US President Donald Trump has

Cleveland Clinic, G42 revolutionise healthcare with AI

The collaboration aims to enhance patient care, drive medical innovation, and optimise healthcare operations through AI-powered solutions In a groundbreaking partnership, Cleveland Clinic and Abu Dhabi-based artificial intelligence (AI) leader G42 have

UAE, Egypt Renew Ties

The two leaders exchanged greetings and best wishes for the remainder of the holy month of Ramadan and engaged in cordial conversation reflecting the strength of the close ties between their two

UAE tops UK, US in happiness index 

The UAE remains the happiest country in the Gulf, being the only nation in the region to feature in the top 25. Kuwait ranked 30th, Saudi Arabia 32nd, Oman 52nd, and Bahrain
Go toTop

Don't Miss

Johnson hosts Oman’s Sultan at No 10

The Prime Minister and Sultan Haitham committed to continue working

European films screening at VOX opens in Mall of Oman

Oman gets a week long treat of European Films at