In a move that comes as a big disappointment for cricket fans in Chennai, the venue of the Indian Premier League final has been shifted out of the city. The final match will be held in Hyderabad instead. Chennai will be unable to play host owing to three stands at the MA Chidambaram stadium not having permission to operate.
According to one report by PTI, which quoted Committee of Administrators (CoA) chief Vinod Rai, the Tamil Nadu Cricket Association (TNCA) had failed to secure the requisite permission to operate stand numbers I, J and K.
He said, "Since the gate sales of the knock-out matches are BCCI’s prerogative, we had to take a call. We would be having two knock-out matches in Vizag."
The Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad will play host to the IPL final on Sunday, May 12.
It is a tradition to hold the final at the home ground of the defending champions. However, the closure of the stands means the loss of over 12,000 tickets. Thus, while the Qualifier 1 match will be held in Chennai, the Qualifier 2 match along with the eliminator will be held in Visakhapatnam.
The issue over stands at the stadium in Chennai's Chepauk area has been there since November 2011 when it was ordered shut. The Madras High Court issued a stay on the use of the stands by the TNCA since the construction was not in keeping with the building standards of the Chennai Corporation or the Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority.