Some of the New York metro area's biggest sports icons and a host of cricket legends joined Olympic gold medal-winning track & field superstar Usain Bolt to officially launch the 34,000-seat Nassau County International Stadium in Long Island, New York ahead of the 2024 ICC Men's T20 World Cup. 

Photo Credit: ICC/Getty Images

By DreamCricket Staff
 
After a whirlwind construction process that began in February, the 34,000 seat Nassau County International Stadium has officially opened in Long Island, New York ahead of the start of the 2024 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup in June. 
 
Former Olympic gold medal winning track & field superstar Usain Bolt was on hand at the stadium to officially launch the opening of the venue along with a host of other cricket and non-cricket athletes. On the cricket side, USA captain Monank Patel was joined by USA and former New Zealand allrounder Corey Anderson, 2019 ICC Men’s World Cup winner Liam Plunkett, 2009 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup winner Shoaib Malik, and West Indies legend Sir Curtly Ambrose. Outside of cricket, the opening was also attended by former New York Giants Super Bowl champion and Pro Bowl wide receiver Victor Cruz, former New York Knicks All-Star guard John Starks, two-time WNBA MVP and WNBA champion Elena Delle Donne, former American League Cy Young Award winner and ex-Yankees and Mets pitcher Bartolo Colon, and USA fencing Olympic bronze medalist Ibtihaj Muhammad. 

“Coming from the Caribbean where cricket is a part of life, I’m very excited to be part of the T20 World Cup coming to the USA for the first time, co-hosting with the West Indies,” Bolt said at the stadium launch according to an ICC press release. “Getting one of the sport’s biggest events into the USA is a big milestone and can provide a launching pad leading towards cricket’s inclusion in the LA Olympics in 2028. The new stadium is going to be a fantastic place to watch from. It’s very enclosed and you feel very close to the action. I can imagine it will be full of energy when cricket fans get to Nassau County International Stadium next month.”

Nassau County International Stadium is a temporary facility that has been erected in a section of Nassau County’s Eisenhower Park, which is located in East Meadow, Long Island approximately 25 miles east of downtown Manhattan. The park contains three 18-hole golf courses as well as soccer, baseball and softball fields, tennis courts, lawn bowls, an Olympic swimming complex and Northwell Health Ice Center, the practice facility of the New York Islanders. 

The stadium has an estimated cost of $30 million dollars and will host eight T20 World Cup matches beginning with South Africa vs Sri Lanka on June 3 and concluding with USA v India on June 12. It will also host the marquee match of the group stage between India and Pakistan on June 9. Drop-in wickets which were cultivated in Florida by Adelaide Oval Turf Solutions and US-based sports turf experts LandTek Group and shipped on flatbed trucks to New York were installed in the last week of April at the facility before the rest of construction was completed. The facility will be disassembled after the conclusion of the last match at the facility on June 12. 

“Today was a fantastic celebration, showcasing a truly out of this world stadium,” said T20 USA, Inc. CEO Brett Jones. “Having Usain and a host of New York sports stars and Olympic legends to experience it was fantastic and a fitting welcome to cricket in the USA. Having Curtley Ambrose, Liam Plunkett, Shoaib Malik, Corey Anderson and Monank Patel here and seeing their response to the stadium and the playing surface was also pretty special. It gives us a real sense of what the fans can expect next month.”