Ind vs WI T20s: Mohammad Azharuddin agrees to Hyderabad exchanging dates with Mumbai

The Board of Control of Cricket in India (BCCI) on Friday agreed to swap the venues for the first and third T20Is of West Indies Tour of India. The Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad will now host the first T20I on December 6, while the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai will hosts the deciding 3rd T20I of the series. The move comes in after the Mumbai Police expressed their inability to provide adequate security to the Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) on December 6 due to the birth anniversary of Dr BR Ambedkar.

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IND vs WI: Venues swapped for 1st and 3rd T20I

India were scheduled to play West Indies in the first T20I at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on December 6. The Mumbai police expressed their inability security as the city will be on high alert as that day will also be the anniversary of the Babri Masjid demolition. As a result, the MCA sought to reach out to the BCCI for the best solution to be decided upon.

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IND vs WI: Former India captain Mohammad Azharuddin plays a huge role in swap

It is believed that former Indian captain and Hyderabad Cricket Association (HCA) President Mohammad Azharuddin played an important role in the swap of venues. Had the former captain not agreed, the MCA were set to lose the match. “The BCCI have agreed to swap the dates of the Mumbai (December 6) and Hyderabad (December 11) games. We were able to carry out the swap after HCA President Mohammed Azharuddin agreed,” senior Mumbai Cricket Association official told PTI.

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IND vs WI: International cricket returns to Wankhede Stadium after 2 years

A senior police officer told PTI that MCA and the Mumbai Police were in agreement of the decision to shift the date. The last time Wankhede Stadium hosted an international match was a T20I against Sri Lanka. The Mumbai Cricket Association lost out on an ODI against West Indies last year due to administrative issues and was moved to the neighbouring Brabourne Stadium managed by the Cricket Club of India (CCI).

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