Cup organisers 'couldn't be happier' with venue

Spectators lounge on the embankment at the Sri Lanka v New Zealand cicket match held at the...
Spectators lounge on the embankment at the Sri Lanka v New Zealand cicket match held at the University Oval on Sunday. Photo by ODT.
Sun, runs and happy campers - that about sums up the University Oval's dress rehearsal for next month's Cricket World Cup.

The venue hosted ODIs between New Zealand and Sri Lanka on Friday and Sunday.

The group manager of New Zealand operations for the Cricket World Cup, Anthony Crummy, was delighted with how smoothly the event went.

He attended Friday's match, which the Black Caps won by 108 runs.

''It went fantastically well,'' he said.

''The mood and feel of the crowd was outstanding and we thought the venue came through really well. There are some refinements needed, as you'd expect for our matches, because of the nature of the event and what comes with it.

''But, ultimately, the venue came though extremely well. We couldn't be happier.''

The University Oval is hosting three World Cup fixtures - New Zealand v Scotland on February 17, Sri Lanka v Afghanistan on February 22 and Scotland v Afghanistan on February 26.

''We think it is ready to go and we can't wait to get started,'' Mr Crummy said.

Friday's match attracted a crowd of 4841 and on Sunday the count reached 4958.

The venue baked under clear, bright skies and the Blacks Caps posted scores of 360 and 315, winning both fixtures.

Enterprise Dunedin director John Christie suggested the games were a boost for the local economy but was not aware of any specific economic impact studies.

''What we do know is there is certainly a positive economic benefit,'' Mr Christie said.

''But more significantly it is the profile you get when you have an international audience watching the games in the city and the comments that are made about the city during that time.

''From a marketing point of view, it has significant value as well.''

Otago Cricket Association chief executive Ross Dykes had crunched a few numbers as an exercise and got to more than a thousand bed nights for just the teams, management, officials and media.

He was also keen to point out the Black Caps are unbeaten at the University Oval after four one-dayers and six test matches.

''I was absolutely thrilled.

''The weather was fantastic and the crowd support was unbelievably good. The pitch was excellent and of course the two results went in New Zealand's favour.''

 

Add a Comment

 

Advertisement