Snehasish Ganguly, the president of the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) said that the iconic venue of Eden Gardens is absolutely ready to host the second ODI of the three-match series between India and Sri Lanka next Thursday and new LED lights have been installed in the stadium.
The ODI series between India and Sri Lanka will kick off from January 10 onwards, with the first ODI set to take place in Guwahati.
Snehasish said that it feels special to host an ODI match at the venue after six years.
"This is an ODI match we are hosting after 6 years, this is special for us as this is in a bigger format. We have hosted T20Is in the last two years and there were no matches during the COVID-19 pandemic. It will be the first match under the new LED lights. That is now operating on a trial basis," said Snehasish to ANI.
"This is an international match with a light & sound system & DMS system. We have also planned to do a laser show on that day. The most attractive are the new LED lights which the crowd will experience for the first time," added the president.
Snehasish said that new chairs have been installed at the lower tier of the clubhouse and a new press box is also being made, which will be 90 per cent complete by the time of the match and will offer a better view and experience.
"The press box will be done by January 12. It will be a partly new Eden Gardens," added Snehasish.
The president says that he expects a good crowd for the match.
"We cannot say if a 100 per cent crowd will be there as the full capacity of 67,000, but I expect a good crowd. People of Kolkata really love cricket and sports," said Snehasish.
The president said that the match will be a good one as Sri Lanka is a good team.
"The ground is ready. We are preparing two pitches and will decide which one will be ready for the match," added Snehasish.
Snehasish said that the board started selling online tickets for the match and expects them to be sold out.
India won the three-match T20I series 2-1.
With this, India has captured the three-match T20I series by 2-1.
India won the toss and elected to bat first. After Men in Blue lost Ishan Kishan (1) early, a quick cameo from Rahul Tripathi brought back some momentum to the innings. He scored 35 off just 16 balls, with five boundaries and two sixes. Shubman Gill was the anchor throughout.
Following Rahul's dismissal, India was already beyond the 50-run mark in their powerplay.
Suryakumar Yadav continued his red-hot form, smashing Lankan bowlers left and right. Gill was dismissed for 46 off 36 balls, ending a quickfire 111-run stand in just 53 balls.
Suryakumar brought up his third T20I ton in just 45 balls and ended the innings at 112* off 51 balls, with seven fours and nine sixes. Axar Patel (21*) also provided a nice cameo to power India to 228/5 in their 20 overs.
Dilshan Madushanka (2/55) was the pick of bowlers for visitors. Chamika Karunaratne, Wanindu Hasaranga, Kasun Rajitha got a wicket each.
Chasing 229, openers Kusal Mendis (23) and Pathum Nissanka (15) provided a good start to the visitors and they scored 44 in 4.5 overs before Axar trapped Kusal.
Following this dismissal, Lanka could not bounce back into the game and lost wickets consistently. Only Dhananjay de Silva (22) and skipper Dasun Shanaka (23) crossed the 20-run mark.
Lanka was bundled out for just 137 runs in 16.4 overs. Arshdeep Singh (3/20) impressed with the ball after an off-day at work in the 2nd T20I. Pandya, Yuzvendra Chahal and Umran Malik took two wickets each while Axar got one.
Suryakumar was adjudged as 'Man of the Match' for his match-winning ton.
The three-match ODI series between both sides will start from January 10.
( With inputs from ANI )
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