[In Pictures] “New NCA will feature three world-class playing grounds” – BCCI secretary Jay Shah announces new NCA facility in Bengaluru to open soon
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) secretary Jay Shah has announced that the new National Cricket Academy (NCA) will open shortly in Bengaluru. Shah also confirmed that the new facility will comprise three playing grounds with a whopping 45 practice pitches, including a swimming pool and indoor facilities for training and recovery facilities.
In 2014, the BCCI collaborated with the England & Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and Cricket Australia (CA) for an expert opinion on creating a new structure.
In February 2022, then-BCCI president Sourav Ganguly and Jay Shah confirmed the new NCA facility near Bengaluru airport by laying a foundation stone.
The old NCA was established in 2020 near M Chinnaswamy Stadium. The facility was used for the rehabilitation of injured players.
Jay Shah wrote on X:
“Very excited to announce that the @BCCI’s new National Cricket Academy (NCA) is almost complete and will be opening shortly in Bengaluru. The new NCA will feature three world-class playing grounds, 45 practice pitches, indoor cricket pitches, Olympic-size swimming pool, and state-of-the-art training, recovery, and sports science facilities.”
“This initiative will help our nation’s current and future cricketers develop their skills in the best possible environment!” he added.
“NCA has to be the first and final point for international cricketers” – Sourav Ganguly
In an old interview, former India captain Sourav Ganguly opened up about the importance of NCA in the lives of Indian cricketers. He said in 2019 (via Asianage.com):
“NCA has to be the first and final point for International cricketers. it's a place for Indian cricketers. Everyone has to go through NCA. They play cricket all over the places year long. We will keep the monitoring under NCA. We want to make sure there's best people with NCA.”
Several established cricketers from NCA include reigning India head coach Gautam Gambhir, Yuvraj Singh, Mohammad Kaif, Murali Karthik, and Harbhajan Singh, among others. The facility has helped many players, including Rishabh Pant, Rohit Sharma, and Jasprit Bumrah in their rehabilitation journey.