Venues like Thiruvananthapuram deserves more games: Ravi Shastri

Indian head coach Ravi Shastri has heaped praise on Kerala Cricket Association and the crowd at the Greenfield International Stadium in Thiruvananthapuram during the final match of the T20I series between India and New Zealand. The city hosted an international match after a gap of 29 years and at one point it looked like rain will have the final say and a washout is around the corner.

But the groundsmen put up a terrific effort and the crowd got to witness an eight-over-a-side contest, which India won by 6 runs. Many of the international cricketers praised the venue and the scenic beauty of the city had many admirers.

Shastri impressed with the atmosphere at the ground

Shastri called it a top class venue and also credited the groundsmen for their good work “The new Greenfield International Stadium is a top-class venue for cricket,” he said. “The atmosphere there during the match was electrifying with almost every spectator wearing Team India’s blue jersey in a packed stadium. The fans were brilliant and made it a memorable match even though the overs had to be cut short due to rain. Hats off to the ground staff that made it possible to play despite the rain, and the crowd was sensational in size, colour and behaviour.”

Shastri also went to praise the team hotel and shared his favorite dish.“I have happy memories of playing in Thiruvananthapuram (Trivandrum) in the 1980s,” he said to Gulf News. “This time we stayed at the Leela Hotel in Kovalam, which was fantastic. The hospitality and food were excellent and I enjoyed the fish curry and prawns.”

The flamboyant former cricketer was impressed with the maturity of the crowd as they cheered for both the sides during the nail-biter.“What I particularly liked was the maturity of the crowd, as they not only cheered us but also the good moments of the New Zealand team. It was a young crowd, and that speaks of the potential for the game here. Frankly, it is venues like this that deserve more international matches.”

The head coach also added, “The entire Indian team was captivated by the enthusiasm of the fans, and everyone in the team had expressed their willingness to play even a five-over match just for the crowd, by the time we reached the stadium nearly 45,000 were seated.”