HYDERABAD: The PCB has decided to hand over the management of the Niaz Stadium in Hyderabad to the Kingsmen Group, which owns the Hyderabad Kingsmen PSL team, heralding the start of the biggest makeover of the stadium, which is 64 years old and was built in 1961. Niaz Stadium Redevelopment redevelopment project involves upgrading the infrastructure, building a five-star hotel, and establishing a high performance center that will make the ground a state-of-the-art cricketing facility, instead of a neglected historical landmark as it has been for the majority of the past three decades.
Owner of the Hyderabad Kingsmen team, Fawad Sarwar, has claimed that the rebuilding of Niaz Stadium will take around four to six months only after PCB and Kingsmen Group finalize their deal, which will ensure the renovation of the stadium much before the start of the next PSL season. However, delays in handing over the grounds are due to the tight schedule of PCB Chairman Mohsin Naqvi.
Five-Star Hotel and High-Performance Centre form core of Niaz Stadium redevelopment proposal
The proposed Niaz Stadium redevelopment extends far beyond merely improving the existing cricket stadium. The Kingsmen Group’s redevelopment proposal not only incorporates the basic refurbishment needs for cricketing activities like the pitch, outfield, dressing rooms, practice facilities, lighting, hospitality amenities, and broadcast facilities but also adds two innovative elements that will completely alter the commercial character of the stadium. The construction of a five-star hotel next to the stadium will not only cater to the hospitality requirements on match days but also offer commercial occupancy throughout the year, and the addition of a high-performance center will provide the best training facilities available to cricketers in Sindh.
Niaz Stadium was already undergoing renovations at an international level by the PCB and the Government of Sindh even before the emergence of the Kingsmen Group’s involvement, creating a precedent of public sector initiatives which the private franchise investment would capitalize on. After signing of the deal, the Kingsmen group will take charge of the running of the stadium as part of their public-private partnership venture which seems to be the PCB’s new initiative in cricket infrastructure.
Pakistan has not lost any Tests or ODI games at Niaz Stadium
Pakistan has not once suffered a defeat against any team while playing at Niaz Cricket Stadium; thus, it plays a significant role in Pakistani cricket history. This is evident from the architecture of the stadium, which is quite proud of its legacy.
The surface made its presence felt in the year 1982 when Hyderabad-born Jalaluddin delivered the very first ODI hat-trick in the sport’s history, on his home turf against the Australians, to an unsuspecting audience unaware that they were witnessing the making of cricket history. Ten years down the line in 1992, another Pakistani great, who had once been the captain of the national team, Imran Khan, played his last ODI match at Niaz Stadium before taking his country to glory in the World Cup that year. Some of the best names that international cricket has seen have played at this ground and included the likes of Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, Sourav Ganguly, and Javed Miandad.
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PSL expansion to eight teams makes redevelopment of Niaz Stadium urgent
As soon as Pakistan Super League expanded to eight teams this year and appointed the Niaz Stadium as the home ground for the newly formed franchise, Hyderabad Kingsmen, the need for the stadium’s redevelopment became very urgent. In order to meet the commercial requirements of PSL, the redevelopment of the stadium is essential because without the redevelopment, the franchise of Hyderabad Kingsmen will not be able to provide its audience with a modern-day experience.
In expanding the PSL to include eight teams, it was intended to expand geographically out of the usual cricketing cities of Pakistan – and the construction of the Niaz Stadium will be the means by which Hyderabad becomes a commercially viable part of such an expansion.
