Dubai: The Seven Seas Shipchandlers will set up a cricket ground in the Dubai Investments Park (DIP).
"Plans are on for the construction of a cricket and football ground in the DIP. We will be signing a Memorandum of Understanding with the DIP soon," Freddy Sidhwa, Chairman and Managing Director of the Seven Seas Shipchandlers told Gulf News.
Seven Seas Shipchandlers, led by Sidhwa is one of the leading cricket teams in the UAE.
A total land of 38,000 square metres will be utilised to construct this sports facility and should be ready by the end of 2006.
"It will be a full fledged cricket ground of 80 yards with a 15-metre practice area. Whether the pitch will be made of cement or turf will depend on the facilities for water draining in this area," he said.
Floodlight facilities
Sidhwa also revealed that facilities for night cricket will be created. "We will be providing floodlights for the cricket field and the ground will be available for the staging of tournaments," said Sidhwa, who has bowled his team to many a victory with his left-arm spin.
According to a statement from the DIP, the DIP Cricket Club will be solely responsible for the maintenance of the entire facility.
"Cricket and football are the most popular games in the UAE. Building a facility like this complements our larger goal of promoting inter-company sports activities, which kicked off with the recent DIP Inter-Company Olympiad 2006," said Omar Al Mesmar, General Manager, DIP.
"We appreciate the role played by Seven Seas Shipchandlers to ensure that all the required facilities for the cricket field are ready on time. On our part, we will provide them with all the administrative assistance they would require to make the sports facility functional," added Al Mesmar.
