India-West Indies ODI shifted from Kochi to Thiruvananthapuram

After much discussion, the verdict about which stadium will host the India-West Indies match on 1^st November is finally out, and the match will now be played at the Green Field Stadium at Kariavattom in Thiruvananthapuram.

The match was earlier scheduled to be played at the Jawaharlal Nehru stadium in Kochi.

Kerala Cricket Association (KCA) decided to shift the venue out of Kochi after a discussion with Sports Minister AC Moideen.

The India-West Indies dual would have been the first match in four years at the iconic stadium. The authorities had decided to dig up the pitch.

However, the decision was revoked by several people including Sachin Tendulkar. They objected the digging up of the Jawaharlal Nehru stadium to lay a cricket pitch.

The stadium is also the home ground of Indian Super League team Kerala Blasters, co-owned by Tendulkar. The stadium was developed into a world-class football stadium for the FIFA U-17 World Cup held in 2017.

According to the report, the Sports Minister assured the KCA that support would be provided to build a new stadium in Kochi. It was also decided that in future when the state is selected as a venue for cricket tournaments, both Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram will be considered equally.

Several players of the Kerala Blaster including CK Vineeth and Iain Hume had pleaded KCA not to dig up the stadium for a one-off cricket match.

Moreover, Congress MP from Thiruvananthapuram, Shashi Tharoor spoke to the chairman of CoA, Vinod Rai to hold the match in the capital of the state.