Himalayan venue for the third Test between Australia and India is being moved

Due to concerns about the surface, the third Test between India and Australia will be moved from the picturesque HPCA Stadium in Dharamsala. After receiving negative feedback regarding the venue, it is believed that the Indian board of cricket (BCCI) has decided to move the match from the Himalayas.

The most likely candidates to host the Test, which is scheduled to begin on March 1, are now said to be Indore and Rajkot. The BCCI’s inspection panel visited the Dharamsala stadium on Saturday and raised concerns about the outfield. The outfield, which was recently re-laid to install a new drainage system, had several bare spots.

India hosted two Twenty20 matches between India and Sri Lanka in February 2022, the ground’s final international match. Only one previous Test was played in Dharamsala: the fourth match of the Border-Gavaskar series in 2017, which India won by eight wickets to win the trophy.

The second Test between Australia and India will begin on Friday in Delhi. The tourists will be looking to rebound from their innings and 132-run defeat in the series opener in Nagpur. The Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, which holds 132,000 spectators, will host the fourth and final Test on March 9.

After the abrupt end of the first Test, Australia was forced to cancel training on Sunday in Nagpur after discovering that several pitches were watered. Australia intends to remain in the “Orange City” following its three-day defeat at the VCA Stadium before flying to Delhi on Tuesday in preparation for the second Test.

After the crushing innings and 132-run defeat, plans to resume training on Sunday had to be scrapped. After the humiliating defeat on Saturday, Australia attempted to inform the ground staff that they intended to continue using the pitches and should delay watering them. However, on Sunday, Australia discovered that the center wickets and nets were both submerged and unfit for the optional training session.