ISL 2018: India vs West Indies ODI in Kochi likely to get green signal

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) recently awarded the India vs West Indies One Day International (ODI) to the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, Kochi to be played on November 1, this year.

The stadium is also home to Indian Super League side Kerala Blasters. The ISL matches generally start in October and last up to four months. Such a scenario could lead to clashing of fixtures, which has resulted in an uproar from the Kerala football fans.

Despite such shortcomings and public rebellion, it seems that the ODI is likely to be held at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium.

Kochi last hosted an international cricket Match on October 8, 2014, days before the inaugural ISL season. In fact, there was a cricket pitch at the centre of the park during the first two seasons of the Indian Super League in Kochi.

Things changed, however, when Kochi was selected as one of the venues of the 2017 U17 FIFA World Cup. The Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) renovated the stadium with the help of GCDA and the Government of Kerala with one of the best pitches. Fans have alleged that, the re-laying of pitch can lead to the destruction of the turf again.

However, the Kerala Football Association does not seem to be too bothered about the issue at hand.

"It is going to be fine if both parties can work in agreement. As we all know, there were no problems in the first two seasons of the Indian Super League with the pitch and the turf, hence the match shall take place," KFA secretary Anil Kumar said to Sportskeeda.

"The Indian Super League Authorities can always schedule matches accordingly to re-lay the football turf if necessary," he said.

With the renovation works for the FIFA U-17 World Cup underway, the Kerala Cricket Association had to host cricket matches at the newly-constructed Greenfield Stadium in the capital. With the World Cup now over, the KCA officials are confident of hosting the ODI game in Kochi.

Recently, Kerala Blasters star striker Iain Hume also voiced his opinion about this issue, as he took to Instagram.

So having read that there’s a possibility of a ODI Cricket Match planning to be played in JLN Stadium in Kochi, I have to say this.... I was here for the 1st season of @indiansuperleague when they had 6-8 weeks to transform our field from a Cricket ground to a Football ground. They made great strides in doing so, but it was still some way off being an established field for top level football. The amount of time and money that has been spent since then, to get the pitch to the standard it is now for the U-17 @fifaworldcup and @indiansuperleague 4, it would be a travesty to tear it up for a one off cricket match! I understand the love of cricket in not just Kerala, but all of India, and I don’t want to disrespect anyone for that. But there’s a ground in Trivandrum that is Cricket specific, so why for the sake of one match, rip up a pitch that has taken years to get to the standard as one of the best in the country? Question..... Would they tear up Eden Gardens to stage a one off football match? #SaveKochiTurf ⚽️🇮🇳🐘🌴💛

A post shared by Iain Hume (@humey_7) on Mar 19, 2018 at 4:25am PDT

While the stadiums are generally used for different sports in our country, the rapid development of football also opens up the opportunity for the clubs to build their own arenas, where they would not have to face interference from other sports. This would ensure that there is enough space for everybody.