Cricket may be ‘the beautiful game’ for the rest of the world but in India and you would be glad to know that world’s largest cricket stadium is also in India, cricket is not just a beautiful game, it’s a religion.
The number of cricket frenzy people in India is humongous. You will hardly see a person in this country who is not in love with this game.
So, it is quite fair that the largest cricket stadium in the world should be in India. Before the inauguration of the Motera Stadium, the largest cricket stadium in the world was the Melbourne Cricket Ground or the MCG.
However, right now, the Biggest Cricket Stadium in World is this stadium in Gujarat. So, you must be curious to know more about this stadium. So, here is all you need to know about the world’s largest cricket stadium.
The Name of the Stadium
You already know that the name of the stadium is Motera Stadium. But, you don’t know that once the reconstruction started, the stadium’s name became the Gujarat Stadium. However, later on, the name was changed from the Gujarat Stadium to Sardar Patel Stadium. This change of name of the World’s Largest Cricket Stadium happened to give tribute to Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, the great freedom fighter.
The First International Match in the Motera Stadium
Hosting an international match for the first time for a stadium is always a privilege. Very few stadiums can host an international cricket match. The Motera Stadium hosted its first-ever international one-day cricket match in the year 1984. The match was played between India and Australia.
Records Made in the Motera of the Past
So far, till 2017, the new World’s Largest Stadium for cricket had hosted 12 Test matches, 23 One-Day matches, and 1 Twenty20 match. While hosting these matches, the stadium also became a part of some of the historical moments of Indian cricket. Here are 3 records that were made in Motera which changed the Indian cricket forever:
Building the Largest Cricket Stadium in the World
In 2015, the Gujarat State Government issued an order for minor renovation work of the Motera Stadium. However, Mr. Narendra Modi found out the World’s Largest Cricket Stadium is in Melbourne, Australia, he ordered the officials to build a stadium that will be largest cricket stadium in the world surpassing the iconic MCG. In this way, the whole idea of building such a gigantic stadium came.
The entire project of building World’s Largest Stadium will cost around ₹700 crores. The deadline for the completion of the project was 2019. The stadium was inaugurated by the American President Mr. Donald Trump on 24th February 2020.
The First Match After the Inauguration
According to the initial reports circulated, the first match in the Biggest Cricket Stadium in World will take place between Asia XI and World XI. However, the chances of that happening are very slim and according to a new report, the first match at the Motera Stadium will take place between India and England which will be a pink ball test match.
Key Points to Remember About the Stadium
Here are some of the key points that you should be aware of about the Biggest Stadium in India;
- The Capacity: 110,000
- The Location: Motera Stadium Rd, Motera, Ahmedabad, Gujarat 380005
- Nearest Airport: Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport
- Nearest Bus Stand: Gujarat Stadium
- Nearest Rail Station: Gujarat Stadium
- Best Hotels to Book: Hotel New Empire, Hotel Royal King by Sky Stays, Mango Hotels Tune Ahmedabad, Hotel Leisure, The Ummed Ahmedabad
The Bottom Line
The Motera Stadium has already created a buzz around the cricket lovers in India. It will be interesting to see the turnout at the Motera Stadium when the first ball on an international match is bowled. The stadium is looking beautiful and with such massive capacity, it has surely become one of the iconic and the best stadiums in India. You would not want to miss out on watching a cricket match live in this stadium.
