Dehradun likely to be Afghanistan second home ground

Only recently, the BCCI declared the newly built Ekana International Cricket Stadium in Lucknow as the new home ground of Afghanistan national cricket team. The Indian board has always extended a helping hand to its Associate members.  In 2016, when ACB approached BCCI for help, it obliged by providing them the Greater Noida Sports Complex ground on the outskirts of Delhi. Afghanistan has hosted Ireland over there in Inter-Continental (multi-day) as well as limited-overs (ODI and T20Is) matches.

And now the cricket fanatics of the war-trodden nation have reasons for double jubilation as the idyllic Dehradun, nestled in the mountain ranges of the Himalayas can become their second home ground. Dehradun houses the Rajiv Gandhi International cricket stadium, a multi-purpose facility and the state’s only international level stadium.

Speaking to PTI, a senior BCCI official privy to the developments revealed, “Dehradun is likely to be Afghanistan’s second home ground.”

India to host Afghanistan

The Men in Blue in a historic first will host the Afghans in a one-off Test slated to be played in Bengaluru in June, later this year. Ever since their induction into first-class cricket, they have taken great strides as a cricketing nation. And following a continuous good show at the Associate level, Afghanistan along with Ireland acquired Test status from the International Cricket Council (ICC) last year.

However, due to security issues in the war-trodden nation, the ACB was unable to host international fixtures on their home turf. But courtesy the BCCI, Afghanistan can host teams without fearing any turmoil. They have become a force to reckon against, and the one-off Test against India certainly promises to turn out an intriguing contest.

The Afghans are currently preparing for the all-important ICC World Cup Qualifiers, which will be hosted by Zimbabwe in March. Two top sides of that 10-team event will feature in a slimmed down ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 in England.