Punjab Sports Minister Meet Hayer flays exclusion of Mohali from hosting ODI World Cup matches

Chandigarh, June 27

Strongly condemning the exclusion of Mohali from the list of host cities in the schedule released today for the ICC ODI Cricket World Cup-2023 to be held in India in the months of October-November this year, Punjab Sports Minister Gurmeet Singh Meet Hayer has described the decision as politically motivated.

In a press communiqué released today, Hayer said the exclusion Mohali as a venue for World Cup matches was open discrimination with Punjab. He said it was for the first time after the construction of the PCA Stadium in Mohali that no World Cup match would be held here.

He said in 1996 and 2011, the World Cup semifinals were played at Mohali, but this time not even a single league match had been allotted to Punjab.

Apart from opening and final matches, Ahmedabad would host the India-Pakistan match.

Hayer said the PCA Stadium was not only one of the top five stadiums in India but also on the list of prominent stadiums in the world. He said Mohali was always the first choice of cricket fans. He said discrimination against Punjab would not be tolerated at any cost. He said the state government would raise the issue of injustice with the BCCI.

The minister further said Mohali had an international airport and the city also had better infrastructure and adequate hotels for cricket teams to stay. Holding matches in Mohali would give a big boost to sports tourism, he said.