Abandoned tour an accident waiting to happen
By Trevor Chesterfield | December 10, 2010
A Chinese construction worker is seen at work at the cricket Stadium in the southern district of Hambantota on December 8, 2010. AFP PHOTO/Lakruwan WANNIARACHCHI.
What an embarrassment. And Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) cannot say they were not warned when they boasted how the three venues for the next year’s World Cup would be used for the West Indies tour.
There is a major difference though between jingoist chatter and reality. No one, however, can do anything about the rain which has hung around like the proverbial stench from the pile of metaphorical garbage on the doorstep of the government premises in Maitland Place.
What happened at Sooriyawewa, Hambantota, was an accident waiting to happen. It also defies explanation how SLC acted with Po-faced indifference at first then decided to do something about the fiasco when West Indies and Sri Lanka players kicked up a fuss trying to play a series in such a dystopian background.
If anyone at SLC had checked the Bay of Bengal weather map it would have left no doubt that the initial idea to reschedule the five-match ODI series next month would have been the most sensible solution. As it is, the three stadiums are little more at this stage than building sites. It is no way to prepare for a major event 74 days away.
Back in October, a visit to Sooriyawewa, Hambantota, gave such an impression and little has changed. At present, the stadium presents an image of an ugly concrete and steel skeleton, purporting to be the main grandstand, yet has the appearance of a futuristic model designed for a space age horror film.
In pictures: World Cup venue in Hambantota 22 days before ICC deadline
All that is missing is a local version of Terminator IV swinging from the scruffy ramparts of a derelict looking edifice turning it into a macabre reincarnation of a battlestation playground for a rerun of the movie, “Return of the Nerds”.
Quite seriously this where Sri Lanka’s first World Cup 2011 game is to be played against Canada on February 20 and the looming fear here is that it is daily becoming another New Delhi in the build up to the Commonwealth Games. As the building is far from finished, the chauvinism around the game’s government run quarters of how the venue is “on track,” makes those who have seen the monstrosity up close realise how the Maitland Place cronies are living in a world of make-believe.
This has been alluded to before in these columns, but SLC, by offering a Po-faced statement telling us what we knew last Sunday, show they also believe in the tooth fairy.
It was a mix of strong objections by the West Indies players along with chaotic scenes at Sooriyawewa, which led to the realisation that playing the games at Khettarama would add to similar problems. It was still a building site and little had changed since the second Test which began three weeks ago.
Although nothing official has been released by the West Indies team management, it is understood they have complained to their board over the arrangements for the tour in which the second and third Tests were played at two venues that resembled building sites.
Dressing rooms were found to be inadequate at Khettarama and Pallekele and that at Hambantota is far from ready. There were also temporary media centres at the three venues with the print media being made to do with what was available.
However, the Sri Lanka secretariat of the ICC CWC11 organising committee, in a panic, pressed SLC to play the games, despite the venues being two months behind schedule and the incessant rain.
It is believed the ICC are now starting to ask questions about the state of the three venues as rain continues to hamper construction. A planned promotion of Pallekele on Saturday has been delayed a week as the rain in the area has caused a major delay in finishing various sections of the stadium.
Another concern at Hambantota is how the TV company have battled to install camera equipment because part of the stadium needed for full match coverage is far from ready.
The cancellation and repositioning of the series is seen as a major embarrassment for those involved with the tour, the CWC11 planning exercise and the ICC along with presenting yet again maladministration, which after the Commonwealth Games fiasco is something it cannot afford.
© Trevor Chesterfield/Island Cricket.
(For reasons of copyright, permission is required from the author and/or webmaster/editor of islandcricket.lk for publication).
From an early age cricket and writing have been a passion for New Zealand born and educated Trevor Chesterfield; along with these twin influences has been the travelling bug and regularly living outside the comfort zone.
Comments
What a f**k going here still MR ground under construction f**king organization should be responsible for this bull sh*t instead of there showing beautiful ads to people how many day left to the world cup 2011.
Shame shame shame! This administrations deeds will go down in the annals of our cricket history as the worst. They are trying to cover it up by donating thousands of dollars worth of cricket equipment to schools and increasing player contracts but what has happened to our national team?
They made a mockery out of the Dilshan incident. We are now ranked number 5 in ICC Test rankings. Our WC preparations have been washed out. World Cup venues in embarrassing state. Add all the miserably batting performances and losses to the list and it is evident that MR destroyed our cricket by recruiting DS de Silva, Nishantha Ranatunga and these other committee members.
ooooooooooo NO Yaaaaaaarrrr......hummmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm
20 November 2008
6 hours 24 min
The tour was scheduled in the ICC's Future Tours Programme for December 2010. Does anyone know how the FTP works? Why would the FTP schedule tours for December when Dec-Feb is monsoon season? Is it the the home board's call?
8 December 2010
16 hours 4 min
Hilal - early October to mid November is moonsoon season in the Western and Southern Provinces and some years spills over to early December but its mainly thunder showers in the evenings; DEC- FEB is not monsoon season! There have been many tours in the past during November to end of December which were not interupted by heavy rain; the last England tour and the last WI tours to SL was during November to December and not even a single day was lost due to rain - although an hour here and there was lost due to light showers and bad light. What we experienced during the last 6 weeks in SL is freakish weather uncommon during the mornings and afternoons. Sri Lanka cricket CANNOT be blamed for the tour! And its not ill-timed...its just bad luck!
8 December 2010
16 hours 4 min
Trevor is making a mountain out of a mole hill: true, we should not have scheduled ODI'S and TEST'S at Khetterama, Pallekele and Sooriyawewa but Eden Gardens in Kolkata and Wenkede Stadium in Mumbai are just as bad - building sites! BAD SCHEDULING of venues and incompetence at SL cricket. I think Khetterama and Sooriyawewa will be among the best cricket stadiums in the sub-continent...once its completed!
@Marcian - not too sure what part of the universe you are residing, it would be suggested you read earlier Chesterfield columns on this venue issue, some of which also appeared in his Monday column in The Island newspaper.
He warned against using the venues as it would show them up as buildingsites, which they are. I have been to all three, and just where the spectators were to sit in Hambantota would be most interesring. He also said when finished, the venues will be a great acquisitions to the country and quality international venues.
Also, Eden Gardens and Mumbai were not included in the Australia or New Zealand tours so no one got to see how they were shaping,unlike the three in Sri Lanka, and which have taken 14 months to reach this stage. It will be touch and go if Hambantota will be ready by the end of January let alone December.Mountain out of a molehill? Really. Read his other columns on the subject before commenting.
As with other countries, Sri Lankans do not like to have their shortcomings exposed. Accept this as a fact.
20 November 2008
6 hours 24 min
@Marcian: No, macho. I'm pretty sure the northeast monsoon runs from December to March, right? Monsoon season is surely more than a month - not just from Oct to Nov?
8 December 2010
16 hours 4 min
Hilal - macho, I still think the Northeast monsoon is early October-end November(6-7 weeks)sometimes until early December but it rains only in the nights not during the day: By the way, it doesnt rain in Jan, Feb, March - that period is the start of our domestic club cricket. The Southwest monsoon May-July sees many showers in the morning and afternoons but not evenings: thats why there are no tours during May-June; mid July is the start of international tours; likewise, mid November is the start of tours also.
Elmo - I get your point and understand, thanks for it. I wonder if you watched the WI/NZ TEST and ODI series a few seasons ago? most venues were bulding sites in preperation for the RUGBY woldcup - But it wasnt as bad as Khetterama, Pallekele and Sooriyawewa. Like I said before incompetence of SL cricket interim committee!
8 December 2010
16 hours 4 min
Hilal - you maybe right regarding northeast monsoon being Dec-March in the North and East but I made my comment purely on precipitation in Colombo, Western province during that period!
20 November 2008
6 hours 24 min
Right.. right.. I wonder if in previous years the north-east monsoon had an effect on the weather in the Western province. I can't remember; it's been a few years since I've been back home.
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