Afghanistan President approves land for new cricket stadium in Kabul

In their endeavour to host international matches, Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) has secured land for a new state-of-the-art stadium in Kabul.

Afghanistan President Mohammad Ashraf Ghani on Sunday allocated 120,000 square meters of land in Alokhail area of the capital city for the construction of the stadium.

The stadium will include a five-star guest house, a standard swimming pool, indoor and outdoor academies, canopies for crowd, health clinic, mosque, car parking, administrative block and other such facilities.

The stadium will have a capacity to host 35,000 spectators, including designated places for the families, according to ACB.

"I am happy to announce that Kabul will be home to a standard state of the art international cricket stadium where the fans will be able to watch their favourite cricketers play," ACB Chairman Farhan Yusefzai said in a statement.

"I express my special thanks to Mr. President who has always supported the development of cricket and encouraged our players. After initial formalities, the construction of the stadium will also commence and we will ensure it is done with best quality," he added.

Afghanistan used to host teams in Sharjah (2010-16) after their inception in international cricket. Then they had their adopted home ground in India in Greater Noida (2017) and Dehradun (2018-19) which was then shifted to the Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow last year.

--IANS

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