After hosting the FIFA U17 World Cup India matches successfully, the D.Y. Patil pitch will be revamped again to host local cricket matches. The stadium hosted eight matches including the pulsating semi-final between European U17 champions Spain and African U17 champions Mali on Wednesday.
“The work to revamp the pitch will start after Saturday (final between Spain and England in Kolkata) when FIFA releases the ground. The work to make it cricket pitch again will be completed in around 15-20 days.
After the ground is ready we will inform the Mumbai Cricket Association and they will decide to allot matches,” said Avinash Salvi, Sports Secretary and Sports Coordinator DY Patil Sports Academy. “For football matches the grass is 22mm and for cricket we have to cut it to make 4mm. We have all the technology in place and it will not involve much besides some fertiliser sprinkling and rolling the pitch. We have hosted football matches already in Indian Super League (first two seasons), so we know where we stand,” Salvi added.
D.Y. Patil is originally a cricket stadium with a capacity to host multiple sporting events like football after pitch changes. The stadium is set to host MCA tournament matches like the Times Shield and other local tournaments. The stadium hosted the Justin Bieber concert successfully in May and around December it is set to host three more concerts, the confirmation of which will be done after FIFA releases the ground. The concerts will be followed by the annual D.Y.Patil T20 Cup. Mumbai’s largest professional sporting event & tournament for athletes from Schools & Colleges - Sports For All also happens at the venue annually for which the dates are yet to be confirmed.
“We have got a positive feedback after hosting eight matches. It motivated us to do better in future,” Salvi said. After a poor turnout in the league matches due to rain and other reasons, the round of 16 match between Ghana and Niger was half occupied and it swelled to more than 30000 in the 48000 capacity ground during the semi-final between Spain and Mali.
