Just days before the ODI World Cup 2023, images of dirty seats at the Rajeev Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad have surfaced on social media. Notably, The Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Uppal, Hyderabad, will host three matches of the ODI World Cup.
C Venkatesh, a cricket writer, analyst, and commentator, shared several photos and videos showing the spectator seats filled with bird droppings, where the warm-up match between Australia and Pakistan took place on Tuesday.
''Nothing much has changed in Uppal stadium. Only some window dressing and spectator comfort still not taken care of in full,'' Mr Venkatesh said on X while sharing pictures from inside the stadium, which shows dilapidated seats at the venue.
Here are the pics:
After many users questioned him over the authenticity of the pictures, he shared another image to prove his claim. He also shared a video of the condition of the seats amidst the ongoing match.
''This is for those, who said I had posted an old or fake pic. I'm very present at the ground,'' he wrote.
He later clarified that the dirty seats were only present in the Western Terrace while the rest of the stadium has been renovated and has new seats. He wrote, ''My tweets on bad condition of seats in some stands of the Uppal Stadium have gone viral. Some people outside the country are trying to take advantage. I would like to clarify that the stadium has been renovated with brand new seats & only Western Terrace stands old seats are bad.''
He added, “HCA, it seems, didn't have enough time to replace all the chairs before the World Cup. Bt they shud have got the old chairs cleaned up before the match. The rest of the facilities in the stadium are excellent and no one should have any doubts about the hosting capacities of India.”
Many cricket fans shared their disappointment with the Board of Control for Cricket in India and slammed the authorities for their negligence. One user wrote, ''These actions tarnish our nation's reputation. It's truly disgraceful.'' Another commented, ''Local corruption is clearly showing. Hyderabad needs better names, administration, and auditing. Not sure how such a world-class stadium is turned into a local cricket stadium!@BCCI audit the locals and get to the bottom of this. Also, RENAME the stadium!''
A third wrote, ''I puked a little in my mouth. The fact that they are charging any amount for this type of seating experience is a disgrace to the sport. There is no excuse that can justify this.''
Notably, Hyderabad hosted two of the ten warm-up matches ahead of the ICC ODI World Cup 2023. The stadium, which spans 15 acres of land, boasts a seating capacity of 39,200.
