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Hours ahead of the fourth T20I clash between India and Australia, the Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh Stadium faced a bizarre controversy. The cricketing venue in Raipur that will host the fourth fixture of the series between two cricketing giants, India and Australia, reportedly faced a power cut due to unpaid electricity bills since 2009. Just after the completion of the ODI World Cup 2023, the season finalists are taking on each other in a five-match T20I series in India.
The hosts led by Suryakumar Yadav went on to open the series on a winning note and recorded a two-wicket win, which was followed by a 44-run triumph for the Men in Blue. However, the 2007 World Cup winners couldn’t continue their winning streak and slumped to the Matthew Wade-led side by five wickets. The sides will now meet on December 1 at the Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh Stadium in Raipur, the capital city of Chhattisgarh.
Unpaid bill of INR 3 Crore looms ahead of IND vs AUS 4th T20I
According to a report by the NDTV, the stadium had a long-pending bill since 2009, which, rose to INR 3.16 Crore. As a result, the electricity of the stadium had been cut five years ago. A temporary connection was installed at the stadium on the request of the Chhattisgarh Cricket Association, but it only covers a few sections, including the spectators’ gallery and boxes.
The floodlights would need to be run using a generator. As per the reports, the Raipur Rural Circle in-charge Ashok Khandelwal said that the association has applied to increase the capacity of the temporary connection of the stadium. Notably, the stadium has hosted total of three international matches since the power cut in 2018.
