The Government of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) is considering handing the Imran Khan Cricket Stadium, Peshawar to Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) to revive International Cricket in KP.
The provincial government and the PCB are in talks regarding the proposed agreement with two rounds of negotiations already completed to finalise the terms and conditions of the agreement, according to sources.
The PCB is also reviewing the deals it has with the Lahore and Karachi municipal authorities for the administration of the Gaddafi Stadium and the National Stadium respectively and is looking into them before finalising a decision.
KP Adviser for Sports Taj Muhammad Tarand stated that government is interested in bringing back international cricket to Peshawar.
Read more: Imran Khan Stadium to host PSL matches this year: KP CM Sohail Afridi
However, the issue of whether the stadium would be handed over to the PCB has not been finalised, and there are consultations and reviews in progress.
From the time of its construction till 2010, the stadium was named Arbab Niaz Stadium, and before that, Shahi Bagh Stadium.
Owned by the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Cricket Association (KPCA) and was renamed after former Pakistan cricket captain and former prime minister Imran Khan.
It was built in November 1984 in the name of former federal sports minister Arbab Niaz, and was called Arbab Niaz Stadium.
It was replaced in 1985 by the Peshawar Club Ground as the home venue of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa cricket team and in 1986 it became the home venue of the Peshawar cricket team.
The stadium was host to international cricket between 1984 and 2006 with 6 Test matches and 15 One Day Internationals (ODI) played there.
The handing of the stadium to the PCB is considered a part of the government’s plan to renovate it to international standards and bring top-class cricket back to Peshawar after almost two decades.
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