The Ekana Stadium in Lucknow has been added to the venue roster for the 2023 ICC ODI World Cup, bringing immense pleasure to town’s cricketing neighborhood. The venue, inaugurated in 2017, serves as the house floor for the Indian Premier League franchise Lucknow Tremendous Giants (LSG) and can be a most popular venue for worldwide girls’s cricket. Moreover, it has been the adopted house floor for Afghanistan’s males’s staff for its worldwide fixtures.
Yudhvir Singh, the secretary of the Uttar Pradesh Cricket Affiliation, believes internet hosting World Cup matches will enhance cricket within the area and encourage younger expertise. They’re dedicated to creating it a memorable expertise for all concerned.
In case you are planning to observe a sport on the Ekana Stadium throughout the World Cup, right here’s all you should know:
Capability: The Ekana Stadium has a capability of roughly 50,000 spectators. The final stands on the east and west ends maintain 44,296 seats, whereas the remainder are allotted to hospitality areas within the north and south ends. Amongst these, 2,716 seats are reserved for closed hospitality areas, and about 3,390 seats are designated for semi-hospitality (open President’s Stand) areas. Importantly, there are not any pillars or sight screens, guaranteeing an unobstructed view for all spectators at Ekana.
Hospitality packing containers: There are 32 hospitality packing containers, 16 at every finish. Whereas seat distribution varies, every field is provided with its personal washroom and bathe. Moreover, there are 4 VVIP areas, sometimes internet hosting town’s political figures, with their very own eating areas. These areas are reserved for esteemed visitors and dignitaries. By way of seat allocation, the BCCI has reserved 200 seats, the Worldwide Cricket Council 250 seats, collaborating groups 40 seats, and the UPCA 400 seats, as per a tentative seating association accessed by Sportstar.
WiFi can be out there to gamers and choose visitors. Three ranges within the North and South Ends could be accessed by stairs and elevators on both aspect. There can be a separate entrance and stairway for collaborating groups to safeguard their privateness and security.
Follow services: Adjoining to the Ekana Stadium is a B floor with 19 pitches and web services, utilised for cricket teaching camps, academy matches, and membership video games. The LSG prioritises this area for its preparations. Nonetheless, there are not any indoor nets or follow areas out there on-site.
There’s a herringbone drainage system at Ekana, resembling the bones of a herring fish, which features a central sloping pipe with lateral pipes to effectively handle water.
| Photograph Credit score:
SANDEEP SAXENA
There’s a herringbone drainage system at Ekana, resembling the bones of a herring fish, which features a central sloping pipe with lateral pipes to effectively handle water.
| Photograph Credit score:
SANDEEP SAXENA
Pitches: The Ekana Stadium pitch drew scrutiny when Hardik Pandya criticised it as a ‘shocker’ following a low-scoring T20I in opposition to New Zealand. Subsequently, the curator, Surendra Yadav, was changed by Sanjeev Agarwal. After the 2023 IPL season, the pitch underwent intensive renovation. Footage of all the centre being dug up circulated on social media, revealing salt accumulation. Agarwal utilised terreplex, a protected acid, to switch soil pH and dissolve calcified deposits over a 14-day interval. The pitch consists of three layers: a base of coarse soil, an intermediate layer, and an eight-inch prime layer of cricketing soil, with some venues choosing clay whereas others use sand. “Now we have introduced in black soil from Odisha, which is likely one of the finest to make use of for cricket. It has a 67 % clay composition. Ekana has 9 pitches in whole, of which 4 have a black soil base whereas the opposite 5 use crimson soil — Mumbai soil, which helps extra with flip,” Agarwal mentioned.
Floodlights: The stadium has six halogen floodlight towers, which want half-hour to come back on utterly.
Drainage and outfield: There’s a herringbone drainage system, resembling the bones of a herring fish, which features a central sloping pipe with lateral pipes to effectively handle water. This design permits for match resumption inside half-hour after the rain stops. Moreover, the system collects rainwater in a moat across the outfield for reuse.
Entry factors: There are 5 important entrance gates and 25 entry factors to the stands. Gate No. 3 is usually reserved for gamers and VIPs. A peripheral highway encircles the principle venue, facilitating straightforward automobile and bus entry, a rarity amongst Indian stadiums. Nonetheless, crowd management can be essential on busy match days to make sure the passageway stays usable for autos. 5 hundred parking slots for two-wheelers and four-wheelers can be found in a number of areas.
Though Lucknow lacks metro entry to the stadium, buses run to Amar Shaheed Path, the principle connecting highway. E-rickshaws and shuttle providers are additionally thought of for fan mobility on match days. A difficulty reporters confronted throughout the IPL was delays at safety checks as these within the Sportz Metropolis would additionally entry the services by the identical entrances. Safety for the World Cup can be more proficient and skilled in experiencing this, and preparations are additionally anticipated to facilitate the sleek entry and exit of followers.
The ICC World Cup is anticipating an enormous influx of journalists from around the globe, which the organisers right here must work on accommodating.
| Photograph Credit score:
SANDEEP SAXENA
The ICC World Cup is anticipating an enormous influx of journalists from around the globe, which the organisers right here must work on accommodating.
| Photograph Credit score:
SANDEEP SAXENA
Accessibility and challenges: There are good services for wheelchair-bound spectators, together with spacious walkways within the stands and seats at stair ranges with wheelchair entry in each block. Six spiral ramps across the stadium guarantee easy accessibility to the stands. The venue prioritises accessibility for followers with various talents, and the organisers are contemplating offering wheelchairs on campus if essential. Nonetheless, ramps will not be out there inside the stands for motion between blocks, limiting wheelchair-accessible seating to that particular ground stage.
In case of emergency: There can be six medical kiosks. 4 ambulances can be on standby on the premises, with two devoted to gamers, one every for the house and away staff.
Dressing rooms: There are two spacious dressing rooms within the South Finish, painted in a blue-ivory-white color scheme. They provide an identical services for each house and away groups, together with participant sofas, particular person slots with storage and lockers, and a viewing gallery for help employees. Linked to the dressing rooms is a big eating space, with passageways resulting in saunas, ice baths, and jacuzzi rooms for participant warm-up and restoration. A typical health club is centrally positioned between the dressing rooms, and washrooms and showers are readily accessible.
Washrooms: Each block affords accessible washroom services for males, girls, and the in a different way abled. These spacious washrooms characteristic over 15 cubicles, a number of urinals, good air flow, and handy proximity to face entrances. Devoted washrooms for the in a different way abled embrace help handles and protected flooring, with accessible wash basins, though peak may very well be a priority for some customers.
Water: Ingesting water fountains are discovered within the frequent space of each block. The BCCI plans to tie up with the official ‘pouring companion’ of the match to supply free ingesting water for all of the spectators.
The Ekana Stadium has a capability of roughly 50,000 spectators.
| Photograph Credit score:
SANDEEP SAXENA
The Ekana Stadium has a capability of roughly 50,000 spectators.
| Photograph Credit score:
SANDEEP SAXENA
Renewable vitality: In the mean time, Ekana doesn’t use renewable vitality. The stadium has generator backup to make sure there are not any stoppages in play or broadcast as a result of electrical energy failure. “Renewable vitality like photo voltaic panels are ideas we’ve earmarked to discover sooner or later given the area we’ve got right here within the stadium campus,” Ankit Chatterjee, CEO of UPCA, mentioned.
The bottom itself, nonetheless, makes use of harvesting mechanisms to maximise the usage of rainwater within the repairs of the premises and to direct again to the RO water facility arrange right here within the upkeep of the pitch.
Areas that want consideration
# The media field within the Ekana Stadium has a capability of 60. The ICC World Cup is anticipating an enormous influx of journalists from around the globe, which the organisers right here must work on accommodating.
# Floor employees and locals say that rainfall in Lucknow has been lower than optimum to date, with worries about rain interruptions throughout the World Cup. Provisions for indoor nets and coaching areas needs to be one addition to the preparations forward of the match.
# To handle spectators’ issues, notably these driving from town, the UPCA is collaborating with safety businesses to streamline parking and the stroll to the principle stadium, with a deal with guaranteeing organised entry and exit, particularly throughout India’s scheduled match.