Gaddafi Stadium Reconstruction Deadline Extended to February 2

Gaddafi Stadium Reconstruction Deadline Extended to February 2

LAHORE: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has extended the deadline to complete the construction work on the Gaddafi Stadium until February 2.

A PCB spokesperson said that even though the majority of the work at the Gaddafi Stadium was completed by Thursday, finishing touches would require another ten days. In the past, it was reported that the PCB had set January 25 as the project’s completion date.

Per the PCB, installing chairs in the stadium was still in the final stages. A digital screen was also installed while work on the second screen is still underway. Six poles for floodlights that carry new bulbs have been completed.

The newly constructed venue, as well as Rawalpindi’s National Bank Stadium, Karachi, and Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium, Rawalpindi, will host the games in the tournament of eight nations, the ICC Champions Trophy, which starts on February 19.

The PCB has stated that the stadium is ready for the build-up event for the three-nation ODI series—which will feature Pakistan, South Africa, and New Zealand—scheduled to take place in the second week of February.

Construction work in Lahore began on October 10 the previous year. There are reports that parts of the PCB’s office are expected to be completed in the near future since the main focus is on preparing the venue for a game of the tri-series before hosting the ICC Champions Trophy.

It is worth noting that the Gaddafi Stadium, also the PCB’s headquarters, is the perfect place to host the Champions Trophy, as the ICC cleared all three venues to host the Trophy games.

However, in a hurry, the PCB gave a massive sum, Rs12.80 billion, to improve the three stadiums, where construction began just two months earlier. Reconstruction continued over three shifts in the Gaddafi Stadium, and the work was done the same way.