Boasting of a 30,000-seat gallery and seven cricket pitches, Tamil Nadu’s second international cricket stadium, after Chennai’s MA Chidambaram Stadium, is taking shape near Coimbatore, with the govt finalising key design and usage plans. Announced in 2024, the stadium spread across 30 acres will have a sub-air drainage system that can clear 10,000 litres of water per minute.It will be built at 500cr and is being modelled on Perth’s Optus Stadium — a multi-purpose venue that hosts top-tier cricket, football, and entertainment events in the Australian city. The design will allow for both day and night matches, and even concerts and large gatherings, said senior officials from the sports department.The playing field will span 140 metres north to south and 170 metres east to west. “Boundary lengths will be decided during the match. In some dimensions, it will be shorter than the Chepauk stadium, and in some, it can be longer,” said an official with the sports department. Overall, it could range between 60 and 75 metres.A meeting was held on May 13, with SDAT, TNCA, Collage Design, design consultant, and Knight Frank Pvt Ltd, a real estate and commercial consultancy. Here, it was decided that Tamil Nadu Cricket Association (TNCA) will support in the pitch maintenance and also handle cricket-related matters. A separate contractor or agency created under SDAT will handle non-sporting events to generate revenue through stadiums, like in Varanasi, Dehradun and Vizag.A meet was held with TNCA to finalise the maintenance plans. “Non-sporting events will fetch revenue for the govt, while the organiser and TNCA will generate revenue from cricketing events,” said the official. “There will be lower and upper stands, and the net seats are 30,000 but it could be reduced with black screens covering up a few seats. A jogging facility and swimming pool is also planned apart from digital display boards,” added the official.“We are exploring a sub air drainage system, like the one used in Chinnaswamy stadium, Bengaluru, to ensure water drains faster during rains,” said the official. This system works with vacuum suction and can drain the outfield in 20 minutes after rain stops.The govt has identified land in an open-air prison area in Ondipudur which is 9km from the Coimbatore International Airport. The blueprint will be sent to the CM shortly, and construction will begin thereafter. The stadium is aimed at beefing up cricket infra in western Tamil Nadu, and is expected to be ready by end of 2027.Email your feedback with name and address to southpole.toi@timesofindia.com