Gautam Gambhir Says Yamuna Sports Complex Not Converted To Cricket Ground After Deepika Kumari's Tweet

Yamuna Sports Complex: In a tweet on Thursday, World no.1 archer Deepika Kumari requested Prime Minister Narendra Modi and newly-appointed Sports Minister Anurag Thakur to not convert the Yamuna Sports Complex, an archery ground in East Delhi which was built to host the archery competitions during the 2010 Commonwealth Games into a cricket ground.

The complex is one of the best archery facilities in the country and also houses a training centre for the city's aspiring archers.

Her tweet was in response to cricketer turned politician Gautam Gambhir's tweet who posted about the upcoming project along with a video of the stadium. Gambhir later clarified on the same and said, "To set the record straight. The Yamuna Sports Ground has not been converted but only upgraded. Archery & other sports will continue like before. Being a sportsman myself will never let anything hamper the growth of any sportsman!"

Here's the tweet:

I became Deepika in this ground in 2010 Commonwealth Games. Please do not make this Archery Ground to a Cricket Ground. This is the one of the best Archery Ground in Asia. International Archery tournaments can be happen here.@PMOIndia @KirenRijiju @ianuragthakur @lokesharcher https://t.co/mOrBd5y5UT

— Deepika Kumari (@ImDeepikaK) July 8, 2021

What's the matter?

Earlier this year, Gautam Gambhir who is a Member of Parliament from East Delhi wrote a letter to the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) reportedly requesting it to convert the archery facility into a cricket pavilion and name it after former cricket captain Anil Kumble.

Following which he had to face opposition from top archers along with the Archery Association Of India (AAI) and the Union Tribal Affairs Minister Arjun Munda, who is also the Archery Association of India (AAI) president.

They all stood united against this action and wanted the stadium to be named after the legendary archer Limba Ram. The archers also suggested Gambhir propose naming one of the stands after Anil Kumble at the Arun Jaitley Stadium (formerly known as the Feroz Shah Kotla stadium) or at any other cricket stadium.

In a conversation with The Bridge, Deepika Kumari who has world no. 1 ranking currently said, "I started my archery career at the Yamuna Sports Complex (DDA) and it will always remain close to my heart. Limba Sir has been one of the stalwarts of Indian archery, so we wish to see his name on it".