Sri Lanka-India cricket match moved to Visakhapatnam due to air pollution in New Delhi

It has been officially decided to move the first One-Day International (ODI) cricket match between Sri Lanka and India, scheduled for December 13, from New Delhi to Visakhapatnam. Indian media reports on this change indicate that the reason for relocating this opening match, which was originally scheduled to be held at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi, is a special request made by the Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA) to the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).

The Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA) has stated that the match cannot be held on the scheduled date, citing two main reasons. One reason is the ongoing renovation work at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, and the other major factor is the severe air pollution prevalent in the capital city of New Delhi during December.

It is mentioned that a primary objective of the Delhi Cricket Association was to prevent a recurrence of the severe difficulties and crisis faced by the visiting Sri Lankan players due to high air pollution during a Test match held in New Delhi in December 2017. Considering these past experiences, the request was made, and accordingly, the first match has been completely moved out of Delhi and awarded to Visakhapatnam.

However, no changes have been made to the second One-Day International (ODI) match, which is scheduled to be held in Bangalore on December 16, the same day as the IPL player auction.

Accordingly, as per the revised schedule, the first ODI between the two countries will be held in Visakhapatnam on December 13, the second match in Bangalore on December 16, and the third and final ODI in Ahmedabad on December 19. Following this, the three matches of the scheduled T20 series are planned to be held in the cities of Rajkot, Cuttack, and Pune.