India had their first practice session ahead of the 2024 T20 World Cup and it’s reliably learnt that coach Rahul Dravid is not pleased with the “average” facilities given to the side in Cantiague Park. Rohit Sharma and Co. assembled for a net session on Wednesday afternoon and used three of the six drop-in pitches available at the makeshift venue.
“Everything is makeshift – from pitches to other facilities. Safe to say everything is very average in nature. The team has raised their concerns,” says a source close to developments.
Apart from the facilities, it is learnt that arrangements for food at the venue were also not appropriate. Journalists covering were served in boxes and the players too were not happy. The concern of food was also raised by the Indian cricket board.
India play their only warm-up vs Bangladesh on June 1 and will be using the Cantiague Park facilities till then. Even after that, it will be the only training facility for the Men in Blue as they will be playing three out of their four group games – vs Pakistan, USA and Ireland – in New York – before moving to Florida for the last game vs Canada.
The Nassau County International Cricket Stadium in New York has no practice facilities and the modular venue will only be used for the matches. The global body has designated Cantiague Park as the official training facility for teams and the venue is a fair distance from the stadium.