Kanpur fiasco adds fuel to call for designated Test cricket centres in India

India vs Bangladesh, 2nd Test: Questions have been raised over the lack of modern facilities at Green Park in Kanpur after two full days of Test cricket were washed out due to a wet outfield. The fiasco has reignited the debate about whether India should adopt a system of designated Test centres.

In Short

• Two full days of play was washed out in Kanpur due to a wet outfield
• Questions have been raised over lack of modern facilities at Green Park
• It has reignited the debate about whether India should adopt designated Test centers

On Sunday, the Board of Control for Cricket in India unveiled its state-of-the-art Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru. Spread over 40 acres and one lakh square feet, the world-class facility features three grounds and 86 pitches, both indoor and outdoor. Photos of the BCCI's top brass, including secretary Jay Shah, who was the driving force behind this ambitious project, flooded social media as Indian cricket showcased its financial and infrastructural prowess to the world.

However, a few thousand kilometres away from this enviable facility, Kanpur's Green Park stadium presented a stark contrast, casting the richest cricket board in a poor light. Two consecutive days of a Test match between India and Bangladesh were washed out without a single ball being bowled due to a wet outfield. Bangladesh managed to bat for 35 overs on Day 1 before rain intervened. Unfortunately, on Day 2 and Day 3 -- crucial weekend days -- play was impossible despite no rain throughout those days. The rain ceased at 10 am IST on Saturday, and there was no rain in the morning on Sunday, yet the outfield remained soggy due to overnight rainfall in Kanpur.

This situation raised serious questions about the drainage and infrastructure at Green Park, one of the oldest Test venues in the country. A video of a fan expressing his frustration from the stands went viral on social media, capturing the emotions of the thousands who had come to watch their favorite stars and left disappointed.

This marked the first time since a Test match in Bengaluru in November 2015 that two successive days were washed out due to weather conditions. In that match, which ended in a draw, the rain gods were less forgiving than they were in Kanpur.

Visuals of ground staff resorting to primitive methods to dry the outfield on Sunday also went viral. Although the sun peeked out in the afternoon, officials deemed the outfield unfit for Test cricket, considering the wet patches that could pose injury risks to players.

WHO TO BLAME IF CRUCIAL WTC POINTS ARE LOST?

India lost out on two days of play, which could potentially cost them crucial World Test Championship points. Forced to take a risk-laden approach with the bat after bowling Bangladesh out for 233, Rohit Sharma and his team were determined to force a favourable result.

Unfortunately, there was much to be desired from one of India’s traditional Test venues. Kanpur hosted its first Test in 1952. However, since 2010, Green Park stadium -- under the control of the Uttar Pradesh Cricket Association—has hosted only three Tests and four limited-overs international matches.

The rise of the Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Stadium in Lucknow, the capital of Uttar Pradesh, has overshadowed Green Park in terms of infrastructure upgrades. Despite not yet hosting any Test matches, Lucknow was one of the ten venues for the ODI World Cup in India in 2023. It is also home to the Indian Premier League franchise Lucknow Super Giants, established in 2017, which has already hosted six T20Is and eleven ODIs.

It remains unclear why the BCCI allocated the India vs Bangladesh Test match to Kanpur instead of Lucknow, which was later selected to host the Irani Cup match between Ranji Trophy champions Mumbai and the Rest of India starting October 1.

While BCCI vice-president Rajiv Shukla blamed the weather gods for the lost game time in Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh Cricket Association treasurer Prem Manohar Gupta acknowledged in an interview with The Indian Express that Green Park lacks modern facilities. Gupta emphasized that renovating the drainage system will be a priority in the coming months.

"This is for the first time in 80 years that it has rained so much that we were not able to host the match for two days. But history suggests that no match has been abandoned here. There are many venues in the world where, because of rain, matches were abandoned," Rajeev Shukla said.

"I don't think there should be a hue and cry because when this ground was being built, the stadium was being built, then those technologies were not available. Now technologies are available," he added.

Despite the BCCI distributing around Rs 75 crore every year to its state bodies, the Kanpur Test fiasco has raised questions about the optimal use of resources for improving infrastructure at Test venues.

WHY NOT ADOPT DESIGNATED TEST CENTRES?

This incident has reignited the debate about whether India should adopt a system of designated Test centres, similar to those in England and Australia. The concept of designated Test centres is not new; during his tenure as Test captain, Virat Kohli also addressed this issue, suggesting that the rotation policy for venues should be limited to white-ball cricket, reserving Tests for only five venues.

"We have been discussing this for a long time now, and in my opinion, we should have five Test centres, period," Kohli stated in 2019. "I agree with state associations and rotation for T20 and one-day cricket, but teams coming to India should know, 'we're going to play at these five centres, these are the pitches we can expect, and these are the kind of crowds that will come to watch.'"

Off-spinner R. Ashwin remarked on how India lacks the 'home advantage' that England or Australia enjoy due to the rotation policy. "In India, because there are so many venues, even for Indian players it’s often their first time playing a Test or first-class match at these locations. So, that home familiarity has diminished. Sure, they may have played IPL, T20, or ODI matches here, but in red-ball cricket, that familiarity makes a real difference," Ashwin said during a Test series against England in 2024.

On the other hand, some argue that a vast country like India deserves a rotation policy for Test venues to allow fans to enjoy the traditional format.

Rajeev Shukla highlighted that there was a healthy crowd on Monday in Kanpur even after two days of cricket was washed out.

"The number of spectators that goes down in those cities, because people are used to watching, you know, these T20 and one-day cricket, all that. So, that's why we had, you know, this idea was floated that in B-grade cities, where we have got infrastructure, we should organise Test matches," Rajeev Shukla said, as quoted by PTI news agency.

"Look at here, it's almost packed. And during the rains also last two days, lot many people turned up to watch the match. That means there is appetite. People are eager to watch cricket. So, that's why we are keeping all those things in mind."

"How it works in India is that there is a rotation system. There are about 34-36 state associations, and they rotate matches whenever possible. Every association gets an opportunity to host, and it goes round and round. This process has been ongoing for a long time, which is why they have maintained it," Karthik added.

When New Zealand, the former world champions, arrive in India in a couple of weeks, they will play in Tier-1 cities—Bengaluru, Pune, and Mumbai. The turnout during those Test matches, juxtaposed with the Kanpur fiasco, may prompt the BCCI to initiate a conversation about designated Test centres in India.