With the much-anticipated International Cricket Council (ICC) T20 Men’s World Cup roughly eight weeks away, the Local Organising Committee (LOC) for the Trinidad and Tobago leg of the tournament confirmed that there will be an expansion of the seating capacity at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy (BLCA) in the twin island republic.

The LOC, in a media conference at the Queen’s Park Oval in St Clair on Tuesday, provided an update on their preparations ahead of the June 1-29 tournament, which is being co-hosted by the Caribbean and the United States. The Brian Lara Cricket Academy, in Tarouba, will host five matches in the tournament, including four group matches and the first semifinal.

Haresh Ragoonath, venue and facilities manager for the T20 World Cup, said the refurbishing of the venue should be wrapped up within the next three weeks.

“The needs for the tournament are so great, when the facility was built it was not designed for T20 cricket as it is modernised so much right now. The commercial aspect of cricket has grown so much," Ragoonath told T&T Newsday.

Ragoonath pointed out that the adjustments are being made at the North media tower at the venue, with the installation of eastern and western wings set to see the venue comfortably accommodating over 120 media personnel.

“It’s about 95 per cent completed already. It should be completed in the next ten to 12 days in time for the tournament," he shared.

Perhaps, more importantly, to add to the atmosphere and ambience in the stadium, Ragoonath said there will be more seating to accommodate approximately 2,400 more spectators, thus turning the already 15,000-seater into a 17,000-plus capacity venue.

“There were a couple of areas we identified that had no seats, so we are going to increase the seating capacity of the stadium – all the sections," he explained.

“This has already started and will be completed in the next 20 days as well. The additional capacity will be increasing by about 2,400," Ragoonath noted.