Pakistan opened a renovated stadium for the Champions Trophy in Lahore on Friday, one of three to be used in its first major international cricket event in almost 30 years. The eight-team Champions Trophy will be staged from February 19 to March 9 in Lahore, Karachi and Rawalpindi, although arch-rival India’s matches will be staged in the United Arab Emirates after they refused to play in Pakistan. Lahore’s Gaddafi Stadium was reopened after a 117-day renovation during which LED floodlights, larger score screens, new hospitality boxes and upgraded seating were installed.
A warm-up tri-nation series of matches between Pakistan New Zealand and South Africa begins at the stadium on Saturday.
“We are going to show the world that we are good hosts,” Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said at the opening ceremony.
Pakistan last held a major tournament in 1996, when it co-hosted the World Cup with India and Sri Lanka, before a forced hiatus over security concerns.
Militants attacked Sri Lanka’s team bus in Lahore in 2009, killing eight people, wounding several touring players and extending Pakistan’s break from hosting international matches.
The biggest concern for the Champions Trophy, however, has been whether the stadiums would be ready in time.
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) first promised Lahore’s stadium would be open by the end of January.
Karachi’s National Bank Stadium will host the first Champions Trophy match between Pakistan and New Zealand in under two weeks.
Local media reported its renovation had run past three deadlines between December 15 and January 25, before a final pledge to finish by January 31 was settled upon.
However, work was still underway in Karachi on Thursday.
“The sounds of the hammers and the iron rods and drill machines still reverberated across the empty stands,” the English-language Dawn newspaper said.
“It’s true that the work isn’t completed, but it’s well in its finishing stages.”
President Asif Ali Zardari is due to inaugurate the Karachi stadium on Tuesday.
Work also continued at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium as labourers spray-painted seats the green of Pakistan’s flag and erected a scoreboard at the ground in the garrison city near the capital, Islamabad.
The sport has deep links with national pride and domestic politics in cricket-mad Pakistan.
PCB chair Mohsin Naqvi also serves as the interior minister, while former prime minister Imran Khan used his international cricket career as a springboard into politics.
“I want to congratulate everyone, this is a victory for the entire nation,” Naqvi told reporters before the Lahore stadium opening.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
