JOIN USKeith Bradshaw, the chief executive of Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC), which owns Lord’s, denied suggestions on Thursday that he supported the Olympic stadium’s use as a venue for Twenty20 cricket internationals once the 2012 Games were over.
Boris Johnson, the Mayor of London, said on Wednesday that the London Development Agency were in talks with the England and Wales Cricket Board about using the stadium.
But Bradshaw said Lord’s had a unique appeal. “There is a difference between considering an idea inevitable and lending support to it,” Bradshaw, a former Tasmanian captain, said in an MCC statement.
“I believe Lord’s is the best place to watch cricket in the country and I intend to keep it that way, irrespective of whether another London ground emerges or not,” he insisted.
“Lord’s may be the biggest ground in the country but MCC is determined to retain its intimate, traditional character even if capacity is increased through development. We are a ground and not a stadium, and no one here wants that to change.
“Spectators come to Lord’s for everything from the picnics in the Coronation Garden to the thrill of watching players on the hallowed turf follow in the footsteps of (WG) Grace, (Don) Bradman and (Denis) Compton.
“In the face of a potentially massive rival, we would strive to continue to play to our strengths to retain the special atmosphere and attraction of the home of cricket.
“We have a unique selling point here at Lord’s and if competition is forthcoming, so be it. We will hit it head on.”