On the eve of India’s solitary warm-up fixture against Bangladesh at the ICC men’s T20 World Cup, Rohit Sharma and his counterpart Najmul Hossain Shanto have taken in the sights of the Nassau County International Cricket Stadium, in New York that will be the epicentre of action during the US leg of the tournament.

There’s a surreal feeling seeing the two star skippers of international cricket spin around in surprise at the new facility – one started and finished in just three months – set to play a starring role in hosting the biggest T20 World Cup ever staged.

Having only seen the facility through photos and various time lapses in the build-up, Najmul was floored seeing the stadium in person.

“It’s unbelievable. I think it’s crazy. I mean we all saw on the internet there was nothing (three months ago). Now it looks like a proper stadium and feels great,” Najmul said.

“The Eastern grandstand (in particular), I didn’t expect it to be like this. I think it’s almost a proper stadium. The ground itself looks very good. It’s a proper cricket ground.

“To be very honest I wasn’t expecting anything like this but we all followed on social media how the wicket looks like, how the ground would be, and we are very excited as to what is going to happen here. It feels very good and looks crazy to me,” he added.

Seating up to 34,000 people, temporary stands designed by Populous were raced up, with turf brought in from LandTek Group, an organisation boasting successful projects with both New York Major League Baseball teams and the Inter Miami Major League Soccer team.

The drop-in turf square, meanwhile, was curated in Florida by Adelaide Oval Turf Solutions and head curator Damian Hough, driven on a 20-hour trip in several pieces before being moved into the centre.

Looking around at the stands and peering towards the centre square, a relaxed Rohit Sharma saluted those who pieced together the bold project.

“It looks beautiful. It’s quite an open ground. When we come here and play our first game, I just can’t wait to feel the atmosphere in the stadium,” the India captain said.

“It’s a decent capacity as well. Hopefully it’s gonna be a good one,” he added.

Rohit also expected a good turnout during all the games, given that a tournament of the magnitude of the World Cup is being hosted for the first time in the US.

“People in New York will be very interested in coming and watching the World Cup, with the World Cup happening for the first time here.

“I’m pretty sure all the fans across the various teams are quite excited and looking forward to this tournament. And also as players can’t wait to get started,” he said.