New Zealand v England second ODI shifted out of Napier

Team England is all set to tour New Zealand after they wrap up their stay in Australia for the Ashes this season. In a recent press release by the New Zealand Cricket (NZC), the cricket board announced that the venue for the second ODI has been changed. The match was scheduled to be played at the McLean Park in Napier. Now, it has been shifted to Bay Oval in Mount Maunganui.

The reason behind the same is the fact that the resurfacing of the McLean Park has not been completed yet. Also, there were a few other factors due to which the match had to shifted out of the Napier venue. The Chief Executive of the Napier City Council, Mr. Wayne Jack, spoke about the same. He noted the factors like volatile weather and the need to relay the surfaces with ideal sand type as the prime reasons for rescheduling the match.

”This is not the outcome we wanted or were expecting – we were very much looking forward to the BLACKCAPS meeting England here at McLean Park. However, we’ve been advised by our sportsground turf specialist up in Auckland that the volatile weather conditions have obstructed the opportunity to get this specialised grass grown and we haven’t been able to access the 7,600 tonnes of special grade sand we need to lay the carpet in time,” quoted Jack.

“Sadly, despite huge effort on all sides, these are factors outside of our control. We’ve explored all avenues and together with New Zealand Cricket, made the very difficult decision that we can’t take the risk on what is a really important match in February. We’re now revising all our time frames and looking forward to getting this job done, subject to some good grass-growing weather,” he added.

Important to take the call

NZC COO Anthony Crummy mentioned that it was important to take the call as early as possible. Not only will it help the new venue in preparing for the marquee clash but also safeguard the interests of the team. He added that the New Zealand Cricket is keen on bringing cricket back to the iconic venue in Napier.

”We are still fully committed to bringing back international cricket to McLean Park, but Napier City Council raised some concerns about the ground being ready and together we’ve had to make a tough decision. It’s really disappointing that Napier won’t get to host what is one of our marquee games this summer, but it was important that we informed fans swiftly once we were made aware of the risks,” mentioned Anthony.

Right decision made

Meanwhile, Chief Executive of Central Districts Pete De Wet, stressed that the right decision has been taken. He maintained that a few fans in Napier would be disappointed but it important to resolve the technical glitches at the venue. The second ODI will be played at the Bay Oval on February 28. It will be a day-night encounter.

”Whilst cricket fans in Hawkes Bay will be as disappointed by this decision as we are, we need to ensure that the issues with the outfield are resolved. This will ensure that McLean Park secures International Cricket into the future, and CD Cricket will benefit from this as well,” Chief Executive of Central Districts Pete De Wet quoted.