2011 World Cup Win Wankhede Stadium Becomes Quarantine Centre

The Mumbai Cricket Association has been ordered by the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai to hand over the stadium at the earliest

Photo: AFP

Mumbai: The iconic Wankhede Stadium, where Mahendra Singh Dhoni hit the winning six to help India lift the 2011 World Cup final will now be a quarantine centre till the situation is within control. The Mumbai Cricket Association has been ordered by the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai to hand over the stadium at the earliest failing which they will face legal action under Section 188 of the Indian Penal Code. The letter, sent by the assistant commissioner of the MCGM states, "You are hereby directed to handover the possession of hotel/lodge/clubs/college/exhibition centres/dormitories/marriage hall/gymkhana/banquet hall with immediate effect. The said premises will be used for emergency staff of 'A' Ward and quarantining the person whoever in contact with positive COVID-19 patient and are not symptomatic." This letter, however, puts MCA in a bind as it was contemplating ways of restarting its activities and gets the boys into practice mode. Even the BCCI has been thinking about throwing open the main stadiums to get some practice for Team India cricketers. Most importantly, the BCCI headquarters is also stationed within the Wankhede complex and it remains to be seen if it can operate in its premises or not in this scenario. The only solace that the MCA has is that the Corporation has agreed to pay the rent for hiring its premises but given the current state of affairs in Mumbai, it's unlikely that MCA will get its hands on the stadium or any of its other facilities.