NEW DELHI, July 17: New Delhi has emerged as the strongest contender to host the cricket World Cup final in 2011, an Indian official said on Monday.

The showpiece match will, however, not be held at the Ferozeshah Kotla, the Test venue in the Indian capital, but at a new stadium to be constructed by the BCCI.

“We are zeroing in on New Delhi for the final,” said the official who attended a meeting related to the World Cup in London last week.

“If all goes well, the match will be staged at our own stadium. The BCCI has already acquired land for it.”

The 2011 event will be co-hosted by South Asia's four Test nations – India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh – who defeated a joint bid by Australia and New Zealand in April.—AFP