'Appalling' London cricket pitch slammed by locals as it looks impossible to play on - MyLondon

2022-05-21 17:55:15 By : Ms. Cindy Kong

Residents said the North West London park has been 'left to rot'

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Cricket fans have slammed the state of a pitch in a North West London park, which they say would be impossible to play on. The wicket, in Harrow’s Byron Park, is dotted with holes where the artificial turf has been ripped up, while grass has started to grow on it in patches.

Iain Britton has regularly called on Harrow Council to invest in the park, particularly its sports facilities, as it will encourage more people to use them. Addressing the council on social media, he said: “Cricket season underway and saw some lads trying to get some practice in at Byron Park in Harrow but the artificial wicket is really in an appalling state.”

He joked that the England test cricket team – who have won just one of their past 17 matches – would have some bowling success on the wicket, given its hazardous nature. Iain has repeatedly highlighted issues throughout the park, including broken benches, graffiti and the tennis courts, which are missing lines and nets.

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He said he could not understand how it could be “left to rot”, particularly in the case of the tennis courts, which have new fences but no other equipment.

Saad Al-Nazy, who walks in the park several times a week, agreed that the state of the park’s cricket pitch was another example of the area being neglected. He said: “I like to come to this park, it’s nice to walk around and it never gets too busy. But it needs some more care.

“There aren’t enough benches, and some of them are broken. There aren’t enough bins so people leave rubbish around. The tennis [courts], the cricket pitch – it looks awful.”

Harrow Council has announced plans to redevelop the area by the park known as Byron Quarter as part of a major £690 million regeneration project. There are plans to build 337 flats at the site, although there are fears these could be jeopardised by new planning laws and rising inflation.

Environmental campaigners have also criticised the plans in the past, suggesting they could have a negative impact on the park as the homes are set to be built right on its boundary. The Local Democracy Reporting Service has contacted Harrow Council for comment.