Dubai: India cricket legend Sunil Gavaskar is confident that India will return to play cricket in the UAE as soon as there is a window available.
Speaking after receiving honorary life membership of The Els Club at Dubai Sports City, the 18-hole championship golf course managed by Troon Golf, Gavaskar said: “I think now we have had an opening through the Pepsi Indian Premier League [IPL] , that [a return to the UAE by the India team] is certainly something the BCCI [Board of Control for Cricket in India] will consider.”
Hailing the conditions here, the man who was the president of the BCCI for the IPL event, said: “There was the security the authorities in the UAE provided, the facilities at the grounds, the practice facilities, the venues and the way the crowds responded. In all aspects, the UAE outdid itself and that made a huge impression on the authorities in India. As soon as there is a window available, I am pretty sure those authorities will be looking to come here [to the UAE], whether it is to play Pakistan or whether to play a triangular tournament, I am not too sure.”
Of the 20 Pepsi Indian Premier League matches hosted in the UAE, 19 were sold out, including all five match-days at Dubai Sports City’s 25,000-capacity Dubai International Stadium.
Dubai Sports City Partner Abdul Rahman Falaknaz, who along with Dubai Sports City President Khalid Al Zarouni bestowed the honorary life membership of The Els Club on Gavaskar, said: “I think the Pepsi Indian Premier League proved a lot of cricket can be played here in the UAE with the venues we have. All three venues are fantastic, with the Dubai International Stadium [at Dubai Sports City] out of this world, and we want to keep it that way.”
India’s senior team has not played in the UAE since 2006, when it contested two One Day Internationals against neighbours Pakistan. But following on from the UAE’s successful hosting of 20 matches in the recent Pepsi Indian Premier League, Gavaskar said he expected that absence to end.
The Champions League Twenty20 tournament is scheduled to take place in September 2014 and Gavaskar even said there was a chance it would take place in the UAE.
“Certainly there is a possibility,” he said. “There are two aspects at the back of the BCCI’s mind. One is the weather in India at that stage because there is still a little of the monsoon around and, although it will be tapering off, you do not want to have matches washed out. And the fact is that at that time of year there will be a lot of people wanting to come to Dubai as the summer heat eases. These are factors that will come into play. The decision will depend on the host broadcaster and what they feel, because different timings from India can make a difference.
“All those factors are there, but I am pretty certain it will be sorted out in the next four weeks or so,” he added.
