'Wankhede stadium will be ready by December-end'

Board of Control for Cricket in India chief administrative officer and 2011 World Cup tournament director Ratnakar Shetty on Wednesday slammed media reports about the Wankhede stadium's renovations running behind schedule.

A leading Indian newspaper reported on Thursday that the fear of a delay is worrying the organisers, prompting them to keep the DY Patil stadium in Navi Mumbai as a standby venue.

"As the tournament director of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011, I would like to place on record that the ICC Committee, keeping track of the preparedness of the venues, is satisfied with the progress of the work at the Wankhede stadium," Shetty said in a statement.

He clarified that the deadline given to the MCA is end of December 2010 and not November 30, as reported in the news story.

"The stadium would be ready by end of December 2010, which is the deadline given to Mumbai Cricket Association. The Central Organisation Committee of World Cup 2011 has not taken any decision regarding DY Patil ground as an alternate venue," the statement added.