A proposed traffic flyover could threaten the international future of
the Basin Reserve in Wellington, according to former players.
The New Zealand Transport Agency plans to build a two-lane highway
flyover 20 metres north of the ground and while a 12-metre high pavilion
would also be constructed to block the flyover from view, small
glimpses could still be visible to the sides of the pavilion.
Former chief executive of New Zealand Cricket, Martin Snedden,
has voiced his concerns that traffic movement outside the 40-degree
area from the batsman's view could still be distracting and potentially
dangerous, and that it could lead to players and spectators abandoning
the venue.
"A fielder at mid-off is not permitted to wave their arms when a bowler
is preparing to deliver a ball, despite that fielder being well outside
this 40-degree area," Snedden said. "Cricket balls are very hard. Impact
on the human body of a fast-moving cricket ball can cause serious
injury and even death. Ewen Chatfield, a former New Zealand Test match
player, was nearly killed by being struck in the temple by a ball in a
Test match in 1974."
Don Neely,
the former Wellington captain and cricket historian, said the sight of
moving traffic from the playing surface could do irreparable damage to
the Basin Reserve's character and could lead to the end of Test cricket
at the ground.
"Spectators could decide to vote with their feet and choose not to come
to games," Neely said. "Ultimately, the Basin relies on attracting
spectators for its ongoing existence. The Basin Reserve could lose its raison d'etre
if cricket should cease to be played there ... nothing would be sadder
for Wellington than to see this important historical and cultural symbol
become a faded monument to the past."
Sir John Anderson,
the former NZC chairman who represented the country on the ICC board
for more than a decade, said the flyover could be considered a "major
renovation" by the ICC, which would lead to the ground's Test status
needing to be reviewed after the completion of the project in 2017.
"The [flyover], without sufficient mitigation, runs a small but very
real risk of the ICC status of New Zealand's premier Test match ground
being taken away," Anderson said.
© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.
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