WELLINGTON: The ICC has given final approval to Christchurch’s Hagley Oval to host the opening match of next year’s World Cup.

The Oval is New Zealand’s newest international cricket ground, constructed since the 2011 earthquake which devastated the South Island town, killing 185 people.

While Hagley Oval was provisionally awarded the tournament opening match between New Zealand and Sri Lanka on Feb 14, it required final approval from the sport’s world governing body.

The ICC officials who recently assessed the ground’s facilities found them of ‘good standard’.

Published in Dawn, October 23rd, 2014