Futuristic eco cricket ground in Spain eyes Test match

The founder of a futuristic, environmentally sustainable cricket stadium being built in Spain wants it to host a Test match one day.

Australian entrepreneur Daniel Weston is overseeing construction of the venue in Playa Flamenca on the Costa Blanca, a 45-minute drive from Alicante.

The ground, which will be known as Campo Maximo, aims to be one of the world's most eco-friendly cricket venues, harnessing solar energy and harvesting rainwater.

Weston wants it to become the "home of European cricket" but has ambitions to stage more high-profile fixtures.

"I'd love a Test match to be held there," he told the Stumped podcast.

"If I can build a place which ends up attracting Test cricket and lovers of Test cricket, that would be special.

"I also think the Indian Premier League will start going on tour like the NFL, and maybe one day they might want to play a game in Spain."

The ground's most innovative feature will be its outfield, which will use a new type of artificial grass being developed specifically for the venue.

The synthetic turf is still in the testing phase but has been engineered by experts to replicate the playing characteristics and feel of natural grass.

Weston describes it as "a short-pile artificial playing surface without loose granular infill", installed over an elastic pad and specially engineered drainage layers.

The pioneering surface for the playing areas is intended to significantly reduce maintenance compared with natural grass and will not require fertiliser.

Weston believes the artificial outfield will be "better" than natural grass for cricket, while the installation of floodlights will allow the sport to be played there "365 days and nights a year".

"I was up there in the lab last week. We're using bowling spikes, the toughest cricket shoes, simulating the fast bowlers pounding into it," he explained.

"It'll be consistent, you won't have dips and you won't have places where water accumulates. I think the future will be artificial outfields."

Weston, best known as the driving force behind the European Cricket Network, played T20 international cricket for Germany after relocating to Munich in 2007.

The 43-year-old Western Australian has had designs on his own "field of dreams" since his artist father presented him with a painting of the Waca in 1989, when he was six.

Weston is finalising details for the nine-pitch square at the Spanish venue but, having grown up in Perth, favours a clay-based pitch.

Campo Maximo will initially have a capacity of 1,000 spectators. However, in keeping with the modern trend for modular stadiums, there will be scope to expand that through temporary or semi-permanent stands.

The first ball is expected to be bowled in 2028, with the ground fully operational the following year. There are also plans for a hotel next to a golf course a short distance from the site.

An environmentally-friendly venue is what Weston is particularly passionate about.

"I'm a big into sustainable renewables. I want to try and think 20, 30, 50 years in the future," he said.

"We've got around 4,600 square metres of panels acting as a high-tech solar farm over the car park, which will then charge up into the batteries to then power things including the floodlights to play under at night.

"The recycling of the water is a huge aspect of it, too. Water sustainability is a huge issue in Spain and there will be 100,000 cubic metre tanks under the field to store it."

The idea of holding a Test match in Spain is not as far fetched as perhaps it might once have been.

A significant number of English counties use the Desert Springs Cricket Ground in Almeria for pre-season because of its appreciable climate and excellent facilities.

In March, Yorkshire played Somerset in a two-day fixture at Desert Springs - which has one-day international status - as part of their preparations for the County Championship.

Spain's governing body - Cricket Espana - are an Associate member of the International Cricket Council (ICC) but there is nothing in the global governing body's regulations preventing them from staging a Test between two full members.

An England vs Ireland Test match, for example, could in theory be played in Spain provided the country's national boards were both satisfied.

Campo Maximo would, however, need to meet the rest of the ICC's international cricket venue guidelines to stage such a match and this is something Weston is acutely aware of.

The ICC permit the use of hybrid turf/fibre outfields and there is nothing in their guidelines which specifically bans the use of a 100% artificial outfield.

Similarly, the Laws of Cricket overseen by the Marylebone Cricket Club, do not contain any clauses which specify the wider playing area has to be natural grass.

It is likely the venue would have to demonstrate to the ICC the surface did not pose a risk to injury to be signed off for a major international.

Sangria and sixes, tapas and Tests, all in the Spanish sunshine, could prove an irresistible combination.

Listen to the full interview with Daniel Weston on the Stumped podcast on BBC World Service, ABC and Akashvani.