With India winning the first Test against Bangladesh in Chennai by 280 runs, the Indian fans will be hoping for another clinical performance when the two sides clash in Kanpur in the second and final Test tomorrow.
The Green Park Stadium will be hosting the first international match since 2021. But, much to the spectators’ dismay, the Uttar Pradesh Public Works Department (PWD) has, reportedly, declared one of the stands in the stadium as dangerous.
PWD engineers inspected the Balcony C stand and have, reportedly, asked the Uttar Pradesh Cricket Association (UPCA) to close it during match, as it was in dire need of repair and may collapse if packed to full capacity.
“The PWD has raised some issues and we have agreed that we will not sell all the tickets of Balcony C. We have been told to sell only 1,700 tickets for the stand, which has a capacity of 4,800. The repair work will continue for the next couple of days,” UPCA CEO Ankit Chatterjee told The Indian Express.
The Green Park Stadium, which is owned by the state sports department and is not directly under UPCA, has had limited international game exposure because of the presence of the relatively new and better-equipped Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow.
Will Kuldeep Yadav play at home?
Once the focus shifts from the stands to the pitch, all eyes will be on whether local boy Kuldeep Yadav will make the playing XI.
He made his Test debut more than seven years ago, but has played only 12 Tests till date. Despite 53 wickets at an average of 21.05, Yadav has mostly been included in the squad as a backup spinner to his illustrious partners Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja.
The second Test in Kanpur will be the best chance for Yadav to get a look-in. According to the Green Park Stadium curator, the pitch will help the pacers in the first two sessions and assist spinners on the last three days.
The pitch there is made from black soil, which is sourced from Kali Mitti village near Unnao. Such pitches traditionally help spinners, while red soil pitches help the pacers. The pitch is expected to play low and slow.
The catch, however, is that a turning pitch can also benefit Bangladesh, who have able spinners in their team like Mehidy Hasan Miraz and Shakib Al Hasan.
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