Mumbai: Saurashtra Cricket Association (SCA) has vowed to stage the first Test between India and England, commencing on November 9, according to Niranjan Shah, the secretary of the association. “We have enough money to host the Test and I don’t think any association would back out at this time,” Shah said.
“If we or any other association backs out claiming no funds and later found to have crores in fixed deposits, it would not only be embarrassing but also send wrong signals,” he added. Shah said the SCA has insured the Test for Rs 4 crore. The insurance premium for this is likely to be around Rs 3 lakhs payable to the National Insurance Company.
Another senior official said the bilateral series would go ahead even if the MoU is not signed. BCCI chief Anurag Thakur and ECB president Giles Clarke share a good rapport. And if reports are to be believed, an ambitious Clarke has joined hands with BCCI to “remove Shashank Manohar from ICC’s chairman post”.
