The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) is working hard to finish renovations at the National Stadium in Karachi before the Champions Trophy next month. Matches originally planned for the stadium have been moved to other locations. The stadium is set to host the opening match of the ICC Champions Trophy between Pakistan and New Zealand on February 19.
“Due to the ongoing construction and renovation work it was decided against holding any matches at the NSK as it would only further delay the work and also disturb the players,” one official said.
The decision to relocate matches is to avoid further delays in the renovation work and to minimize disruption to players.
The Quaid-e-Azam Trophy final, Pakistan’s premier first-class cricket competition, has been moved from the National Stadium to the UBL Complex. The final began on Thursday at the UBL Complex.
The PCB has also announced that the two-Test series against the West Indies later this month would be held in Multan after scheduling the first Test in Karachi after continuing delay in the renovation work remained a cause of concern.
Some of the construction work, which was scheduled for a December 15 finish, was completed at the deadline and fresh instructions have been issued to the construction company to push the job schedule.
The PCB is carrying out massive construction work worth Rs 12 billion at all three venues scheduled to host the Champions Trophy, including Lahore and Rawalpindi.
It includes renovation of the main NSK building, new dressing rooms, media centres, hospitality boxes and board offices.
A new electronic scoreboard is also being installed along with new chairs in enclosures and the fencing around the ground is also being replaced from scratch.
