Why a cricket stadium is coming to LaGrange, Ga.

Caption

The planned LaGrange Cricket Stadium is expected to become a hub for fans of the popular sport across the Southeast.

Credit: Siddarth Das / LaGrange Cricket Stadium

A New Jersey-based developer plans to break ground this week on a 10,000-seat stadium in west Georgia’s LaGrange.

It’s expected to become a destination for fans of the world’s second-most popular sport, cricket.

Beloved especially in south Asia, the bat-and-ball game also has a large following in this country.

That was evident during the Cricket World Cup, held in the U.S. last year, when hundreds of thousands of supporters attended matches in Florida, Texas and New York, in addition to other venues outside the country. 

Developer Siddharth Das said that enthusiasm now will come to a city about an hour’s drive from the world’s busiest airport, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport.

“Since we announced the stadium in LaGrange, obviously everybody’s like ‘Why cricket? Why LaGrange?’” he said. “But they just haven’t seen it.  They haven’t seen how passionate we are about it and the excitement around the game.”

Das is the driving force behind Das Cricket Academy in New Jersey, the New Jersey Blackcaps and the Atlanta Blackcaps, a professional cricket franchise team for cricket’s U.S. Premier League.

He’s working with the sport’s governing bodies, the International Cricket Council and USA Cricket, to promote the LaGrange stadium for games and training camps.

But he’s also promoting the venue for other events.

“One of the exciting things that I always envision happening is monster truck being here at the stadium because of the space that we can provide,” he said. “The way the stadium is being designed from an audio-visual standpoint, the lighting, all of that is being done in order to ensure that we actually host concerts and cultural events. We’ll open up it to everybody, whoever wants to host an event there.”

Plans also include a FIFA-compliant soccer field, a hotel, food and beverage opportunities and other projects backed by real estate giant Selig Enterprises.

Selig already has developed a nearby resort and waterpark, Great Wolf Lounge.

The new developments are expected to have a huge economy impact on Troup County.

As to why cricket lovers are so passionate about the sport, Das pointed to its camaraderie, as in any popular game, like tailgating events or watch parties for soccer or football.

And he notes there is a shorter version of the game.

“When you think about cricket, everybody thinks it goes on for days,” he said. “Yes, that is true. There is a version of the games that goes on up to five days. And then you have a one-day game and a T20 game, which is a three- or three-and-a-half-hour game, very similar to a football game or a baseball game. So it does not take that long. It's very exciting. It keeps moving. And the beauty of all of this is if folks don't know that baseball actually came out of cricket.”

The stadium is expected to be complete by 2027.