ICC promptly diverts Champions Trophy tour away from PoK cities after BCCI’s objections
The original tour schedule included cities like Skardu, Hunza and Muzaffarabad, which fall in the PoK region, a disputed territory between India and Pakistan.
A day after conclusion of the 2024 Indian Premier League (IPL), the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) secretary Jay Shah on Monday announced prize money for the groundsmen and curators of all the 10 stadiums and the three additional venues as a mark of gratitude for their hard work.
Besides the 10 home venues of all the Indian Premier League (IPL) teams, three other venues, namely, Dr YS Rajashekar Reddy ACA-VDCA International Cricket Stadium in Visakhapatnam, the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium in Dharamsala and the Barsapara Cricket Stadium in Guwahati, also played hosts to a few games.
The Delhi Capitals played their first three home games in Visakhapatnam as their traditional home venue — the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi was preoccupied for the Women’s Premier League playoffs.
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Meanwhile, for Punjab Kings and Rajasthan Royals, it has been a tradition to play a couple of their home games in a second base, and as such the HPCA Stadium in Dharamsala and the Barsapara Stadium in Guwahati were allotted a couple of games each during the tournament.
Recognising the hard work put in by the groundsmen, particularly during the latter part of the tournament when rain affected a few matches, including the last league match between the Royals and eventual IPL 2024 champions Kolkata Knight Riders in Guwahati, the BCCI decided to reward the unsung heroes.
“The unsung heroes of our successful T20 season are the incredible ground staff who worked tirelessly to provide brilliant pitches, even in difficult weather conditions,” Shah said.
“As a token of our appreciation, the groundsmen and curators at the 10 regular IPL venues will receive Rs 25 lakhs each, and the same at the three additional venues will get Rs 10 lakhs each. Thank you for your dedication and hard work,” he added.
The two-month long tournament culminated in Chennai on Sunday with the Kolkata Knight Riders winning their third title after completing an eight-wicket rout of Sunrisers Hyderabad in an one-sided title clash.
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