The Hyderabad Cricket Association has clarified it is gearing up to host the Test between India and Bangladesh in February “come what may”, contrary to reports of opting out of the responsibility. The Hyderabad Cricket Association has called for a meeting to discuss the preparations for the upcoming Test, according to secretary K John Major, reports Sportsstar. Confusion prevailed over the conduct of the one-off Test match between India and Bangladesh in Hyderabad as BCCI sources said that the Hyderabad Cricket Association had expressed its inability to host the Test match.
However, the Hyderabad Cricket Association (HCA) secretary K. John Manoj has clarified that his board had only written a letter to the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) seeking release of funds to host the Bangladesh Test match and other domestic events. Sources in the BCCI in Mumbai had earlier revealed to Sportstar that the HCA has expressed its inability to shoulder this responsibility.
“There is no way we are going to back out from hosting the Test match next month at Rajiv Gandhi international stadium here. I had written the letter to the BCCI a couple of days ago asking for funds as per the Supreme Court order,” the HCA official informed Sportstar.
Questioned whether he had even hinted that not getting funds may force the HCA to back out from hosting the Test, John Manoj said there was no suggestion of that nature. “In fact, the BCCI official P R Viswanathan is visiting Hyderabad [on Monday] to discuss with the HCA curator Y L Chandrasekhar about the pitch preparations,” he said.
“We are going ahead with our Test match preparations and even convened a meeting of the Executive Committee on Monday to discuss the preparations of the Test match,” the HCA secretary said. For his part, Narender Goud, the senior-most vice-president who was nominated as the interim chief of HCA after incumbent president Arshad Ayub had quit a couple of days ago, pleaded ignorance about HCA backing out in this regard. “As far as I know HCA is gearing up to host the Test match and we will host it come what may,”  Narender said.