Kochi: The Kerala Cricket Association's decision to settle for Sports Hub in Thiruvananthapuram as the venue for the India-West Indies ODI in November may have brought a temporary relief. But the debate on 'cricket plus football vs football only' lies as a Damocles' sword over the Jawaharlal Nehru International (JNI) Stadium in Kochi. Another standoff may arise when the KCA gets more international matches in the near future.

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While the GCDA, the custodians of the JNI Stadium, has been spared for now of the headache of seeking turf experts' help on exploring options for the smooth conduct of both the games, such a co-existing of both cricket and football in the Kochi stadium would be possible only through the introduction of drop-in wickets, feels UEFA and FIfa pitch consultant Dean Gilasbey, the Welshman who was associated with the JNI Stadium for the preparation of the U-17 World Cup surface. Gilasbey oversaw the makeover of the Kochi turf to make it Fifa-compliant and has been visiting the stadium for the last three years. He has been frequenting Indian stadiums as a consultant during ISL matches also and last visited the Kochi stadium for the Kerala Blasters' final home match in the 2017-18 season.

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"Laying a cricket wicket would indeed make the surface football-unfriendly. Clegg readings (Readings from a testing used to determine the hardness of playing surface using a hammer and a decelerometer) of the Kochi turf would currently range between 70 - 80 Gravities, which would indicate the playing surface is firm and safe for players. However, clegg readings for a cricket pitch can range between 150-300 gravities," Gilasbey tells TOI in an email communication.

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Such a vast difference in hardness levels between two areas of the same football pitch could potentially lead to player injuries, major muscle tears and ligament damage, feels Gilasbey.

"Players' muscles take up to 30 minutes to adapt to the surface conditions, that's for one [uniform] football pitch, this pitch could be two, cricket hard and football firm. The risk of player head injuries if a player falls and lands on his head on areas with clegg hammer readings up to 105 gravities is almost nil. However, for higher clegg value, there is a risk of serious head injuries," says Gilasbey, who rates the renovated football turf in Kochi second only to the Delhi ground.

"The groundstaff will do the best to their to ensure the surface is playable, however, the only way to solve this problem is with the use of the drop-in wickets [for cricket] and then the stadium could indeed be a multi-purpose stadium," says Gilasbey who has been globetrotting as a turf expert and has overseen many important fixtures such as the last two Champions League and Europa League fixtures.

A drop-in wicket is prepared away from the ground and transported to the venue for the match. Drop-in wickets have never been used in India and are common in countries like Australia and New Zealand where multiple sports share infrastructure. Even with drop-in wickets, a clear segregation of cricket and football seasons is needed, according to Gilasbey. "Timing is the key, a full-time crew of groundstaff throughout the year should be invested in. Furthermore, the stadium should be mindful of the football season, no other event should take place within an agreed period of the footballing season," says Gilasbey.

Gilasbey's comments come after Kerala Blasters star player Iain Hume had said that the turf at the JNI Stadium was not ideal for football during the inaugural ISL season when the venue hosted the team's home matches just weeks after an ODI between India and West Indies.

