2023 ODI World Cup- Indian vs Pakistan clash to take place at the Narendra Modi Stadium
India vs Pakistan (Source – Twitter)
The World’s largest cricket stadium, Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad is likely to host a game between arch-rivals India and Pakistan in the upcoming ODI World Cup. With a capacity of over one lakh spectators, the venue has the largest sitting capacity.
The Indian Cricket Board hasn’t announced the full schedule of the World Cup. However, it is likely to be out after the conclusion of the ongoing season of the Indian Premier League 2023. The tournament is expected to begin in the first week of October and will end in the mid of November.
Nagpur, Bengaluru, Guwahati, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Trivandrum, Mumbai, Delhi, Lucknow, Rajkot, Indore, Bengaluru, and Dharamshala are the short-listed venues that host matches of the showpiece event. As reported by The Indian Express, India will play their league matches at seven venues. However, apart from the game with Pakistan, the hosts can also play in Ahmedabad again if they qualify for the finals. On the other hand, Pakistan is likely to play most of its matches in Chennai and Bengaluru amid security reasons.
As per the sources, the Indian team has requested the Board to allot them games against Australia, England, New Zealand, and South Africa in venues that support spinners.
“The Indian team has performed well on slow tracks in the past few years at home. So the team management had requested that whenever the schedule is being prepared the Indian team should face top teams on slow pitches. They wanted to have a home advantage,” as quoted in Sportskeeda.
Indian Cricket Board to spend more than 500 crore to upgrade stadiums
Meanwhile, the Indian Board has allotted more than Rs 500 crore to upgrade stadiums across the country ahead of the tournament. Clean toilets, easy access, and clean seats are asked to be the top priorities with regard to the hosts’ upgradation mission.
Indian last hosted the ODI World Cup in the year 2011 where the hosts went on to become World Champions after 28 years by defeating Sri Lanka in the final.
