ISLAMABAD, June 12: With just two quality grounds, Islamabad will soon have a third top class facility once work on the Diamond Cricket Ground is completed by mid August.

The home of Diamond Club for the past two decades, the ground is now being developed by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) under its Vision 2005 programme at a cost of Rs 2.5 million.

It will be the first ground in Islamabad which will be run by a cricket club and is certain to join the Shalimar and F-9 Park Grounds as the top-rated facilities in the Capital.

Located in the heart of the city in the belt between sectors G-8 and G-9, the ground once complete will have a pavilion, four pitches, sight screens, fencing and a practice area.

Work on levelling of the ground and construction of a pavilion, complete with lavatories and changing rooms began last month and club officials say the venue would be ready to host first class matches by August.

The ground caught the attention of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) when its chairman, Lt Gen Tauqir Zia was invited to give away prizes to the winners of the Islamabad Cricket Association (ICA) League in 2001.

Tauqir had announced then, that the ground would be fully developed in order to benefit the cricketers of the area. Work now is in full swing with Irfan Mirza, General Manager Infrastructure and Development of the PCB responsible for it.

Players who have played at this ground for years are delighted with the turn of events. “I loved playing on this ground quite a bit but I am sure that once the development work is completed, it would become 100 percent lovable,” said a team- member of the Diamond Club who has played at this venue for years but did not want to be identified.