SINGAPORE – For the first time since 2016, the Singapore Cricket Association (SCA) will finally have a place to call home – its new national training centre will be located at West Coast Ground.
In a press statement on Feb 16, Sport Singapore (SportSG) announced a dedicated training facility for the national teams to prepare for major competitions such as the SEA Games, Asian Games and International Cricket Council-ranking competitions.
The 4.7ha site at West Coast Road will have a cricket pitch, nets, gym and sheltered training area. The men’s and women’s national cricket teams will begin training there by mid-2024.
SCA president Mahmood Gaznavi said in a press statement: “It is a challenge to find adequate space for field sports, given the land constraint we face in Singapore. The national cricket team’s training regimen and schedule require a dedicated space that is conducive for training.
“We appreciate the strong support from the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth (MCCY) and SportSG in this journey – from negotiating for earlier shared facility arrangement at Balestier Plain to their quick action in helping us secure the lease at West Coast Ground.”
Former national men’s player Vivek Vedagiri, 42, who is now part of the national team development committee called it a “much-needed boost for the sport in Singapore”.
Vivek, who was part of the national team from 2005-2017, said: “Knowing that we now have a consistent place to plan training programmes around is important. We can now arrange, plan and execute training for the men’s, women’s and age-group teams and also cater for more development programmes.”
National women’s team captain Shafina Mahesh, 24, added: “We will get the opportunity to train on turf wickets similar to those we are expected to compete on and have a purpose-built indoor (area) to train when it rains, without interruptions and in a safe manner.
“This will widen our horizons for opportunities of tournaments and games locally... it has been years since we lost our ground at Kallang, so having this dedicated national cricket ground will allow us to train in a more conducive environment with proper facilities and motivate us even more.”
The National Cricket League will continue to be held at various locations, including the Padang, Dempsey and the Balestier Plain at the Singapore Indian Association and Ceylon Sports Club grounds, added the SCA.
The lack of a proper training pitch for Singapore’s cricketers came to the fore during the Cambodia SEA Games in May 2023. Shortly after winning the men’s Sixes title, the national players raised concerns about the preparations in the run-up to the Games, pointing to the lack of a proper training venue.
The senior side then trained up to thrice a week at a shared facility at the Singapore Indian Association at Balestier Road, which they had said was poorly maintained and too small.
Training has been held there since 2016, after the SCA had to vacate the Kallang Cricket Field in January after their yearly lease was not renewed by SportSG. Ahead of major competitions, the team have had to travel to Malaysia on several occasions to train in Johor Bahru because of the lack of a dedicated cricket facility here.
Their training facility woes were also a hot issue at the SCA elections in July 2023 when Gaznavi, who has been cricket chief since 2015, came under fire from affiliates, with several members pressing the association on what it has done in the past seven years to secure a new training ground.
Discussions to secure the West Coast Ground began among the parties – including MCCY and various government agencies – in July 2023, said SportSG, and through Singapore Land Authority’s facilitation, the site was secured last November.
Chief of Singapore Sport Institute Su Chun Wei said: “SportSG works closely with national sports associations including the SCA to develop their sport in Singapore and support our Team Singapore athletes.
“We provide the SCA with annual funding support which it uses for training facilities, development programmes, and local and overseas training and competitions for our national athletes. The athletes also have access to sport science and sport medicine support.”
