Behold, the most colossal cricket stadium in the world is here!
The state of Gujarat- fondly known as the 'Manchester of India', which boasts of holding the tallest statue (Statue of Unity) in the world, will now be home to the world's biggest cricket stadium in the near future.
In few months time (by Jan-Mar 2020), Ahmedabad will be ready to unveil a brand-new colossal cricket stadium, with an ambitious seating capacity of over 1,10,000 that will replace the current, lesser-capacity Sardar Patel stadium, Motera which was built in 1982.
With this, the new stadium is set to dethrone Melbourne Cricket Ground to become largest cricket arena in the world. At present, MCG is the largest cricket stadium with a total capacity of 1,00,000+ seating.
Admirable memories
The historic Motera stadium has some fond memories for the Indian cricket team. In 1987, it was here the legendary Sunil Gavaskar became the first batsman to reach the five-figure mark in test cricket. In 1994, Kapil Dev surpassed Richard Hadlee's record (431 wickets) to become highest wicket-taker in Tests at this venue.
This is the arena where the master-blaster Sachin Tendulkar reached the 30000-run mark in International cricket in 2009. He also became the first-ever cricketer to surpass 18,000 run mark in One Day Internationals during the Quarter-final match against Australia in ICC Cricket World Cup, 2011.
Inside the colossal stadium
Being built on the banks of Sabarmati river with a whopping budget of 700 crores, the monumental stadium will be built in over 65 acres of land, having four dressing rooms, three practice grounds, an indoor training academy, an Olympic-esque swimming pool and a multi-sport facility for other disciplines.
A well renowned global design firm that designed Melbourne Cricket Ground has worked on its unique pillar-less structure, offering no hindrance in viewing from any corner of the arena.
The slightly oval-shaped venue will have nearly a dozen pitches with a mix of ODI (black soil) surface and Test (red soil) surface, being laid and prepared under the supervision of BCCI's ground consultant.
As India will be hosting the ICC Cricket World Cup, 2023, the majestic new stadium might be a straightforward choice for BCCI to host the final of the showpiece event, replacing the iconic Wankhede stadium, Mumbai.
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