Mohali may lose out on hosting World Cup games

Mohali, however, failed to find mention in a list for ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup games going rounds in the media circles. Besides Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi, Dharamsala, Guwahati, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Lucknow, Indore, Rajkot and Mumbai

The Punjab Cricket Association (PCA) may lose out on hosting the upcoming ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup games to be held in India in October-November.

PCA was fast-tracking the construction work at its Mullanpur Stadium in order to get completed for hosting the World Cup games. (HT File)

The ODI World Cup is expected to get underway on October 5, with the final being scheduled to take place at the Narendra Modi Stadium — the Ahmedabad arena that happens to be the world’s largest cricket stadium.

Mohali, however, failed to find mention in a list going rounds in the media circles. Besides Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi, Dharamsala, Guwahati, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Lucknow, Indore, Rajkot and Mumbai have also been shortlisted as the venues for the showpiece 46-day event in India.

Speaking on the development, PCA secretary Dilsher Khanna said, “Nothing has been communicated to us officially from the BCCI, so I won’t be able to comment on the same.”

BCCI’s stance on the development is also awaited as the official fixtures of the World Cup are yet to be out officially.

Notably, PCA was fast-tracking the construction work at its Mullanpur Stadium in order to get completed for hosting the World Cup games. The PCA stadium being left out of the World Cup would then come as a jolt for cricketing fans in the region who have been eagerly waiting for the mega event.

The PCA Stadium in Mohali has hosted four ODI World Cup games and three T20 World Cup games in the past, having been catapulted to worldwide attention after hosting the 2011 World Cup semi-final match between India and Pakistan.