The stadium at Hambantota to be renovated before the Zimbabwe tour

The Mahinda Rajapaksa International Cricket Stadium in Sooriyawewa, Hambantota in Sri Lanka has been in a state of despair for quite some time. The President of Sri Lanka Cricket Hon. Thilanga Sumathipala and members of the Executive Committee undertook an inspection at the stadium and have decided that it will be renovated before the Zimbabwe tour to Sri Lanka at the end of next month.

Zimbabwe is scheduled to play 5 ODIs in Sri Lanka starting June 27th. The 3rd, 4th and 5th matches will be played on 6th, 8th and 10th of July respectively which will be hosted by MRICS. The stadium last hosted an international match was on July 26th, 2015 when Sri Lanka played an ODI against Pakistan.

M/s Design Consultants (Pvt) Ltd had assessed the stadium and its facilities and its report was presented to the Executive Committee of SLC. After the consideration of the report, the SLC has decided to invest in the renovation of the stadium with a vision to use the venue as a provincial center hosting school and domestic matches for the remainder of the year.

Teams have been declining to play at MRICS owing to its remoteness and it presently receives no income but costs approximately Rs. 18 Million annually for basic maintenance and utilities to SLC. The renovation is hoped to bring in an annual income that would enable the stadium to function independently without any cost to SLC. They also announced a 40-bed dormitory facility at Hambantota, to cater to the residential and basic recreational needs of visiting teams.

The 3 ODIs between Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe will be played as day games and not playing under the lights will give a saving of approximately Rs. 10 Million to SLC. They reckon that a strategic investment into the MRICS renovation would aid the cricket with the provision of first class venue in the Southern Province.