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Don Makanyanga
Sports Reporter
Zimbabwe Cricket are confident of building the new Victoria Falls Stadium in time for the facility to host some of the 2027 ICC Cricket World Cup.
There have been some concern raised on the timelines that the association has before Zimbabwe, Namibia and South Africa co-host the global cricket showcase.
ZC managing director Givemore Makoni, however, maintained that they are well equipped to build the Victoria Falls Stadium and upgrade the existing facilities, which include Harare Sports Club and Queens Sports Club in Bulawayo well on time.
President Emmerson Mnangagwa is set to lay the foundation stone to mark the start of construction of the stadium.
Makoni said ZC will thereafter upscale the construction work.
“I am quite confident that we’ll be able to meet our targets and we should be able to have a stadium up and running for the World Cup in Victoria Falls.
“The exciting news is that the government is playing ball in terms of support and everything that we need.
“So, I’m confident that we should be able to have the ground (Victoria Falls) up and running.
“Harare Sports Club is a matter of increasing capacity in terms of the playing field, all is in order and it’s an international standard. So, we should not have a problem there.
“At Queens, we are looking to put stadium lights and increase the seating capacity and all that, so that should also not be a problem.
“I can say that work has already started on a number of facilities to make sure that we increase capacity and I’m sure by 2027 or by 2026 we should be able to have all those facilities up and running,” said Makoni.
South Africa have already named eight stadiums that will be used during the 2027 World Cup.
Zimbabwe are not new to co-hosting the World Cup.
In 2003, the country co-hosted the World Cup with South Africa and Kenya.
Makoni is confident of another successful staging of the global event.
“I’m confident that we should be able to pull off the World Cup.
“This is not the first time Zimbabwe hosted the World Cup. We hosted the World Cup in 2003 and we did a damn good job and we have done enough events since then… more than six to seven events and we did a good job.
“I can actually say, confidently say that we are 50 percent ready in terms of our grounds so we just need to take care of the other 50 percent, which I think is realistic in terms of the way we are looking at it,” said the ZC managing director.
Mathew Masinge
Online Reporter