Ind vs Aus 2019, 1st ODI: Top 4 Indian memories from Hyderabad
The Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Uppal, Hyderabad will host the first ODI between India and Australia on March 2. Both these teams will be playing each other for the third time at this venue in an ODI, while this will be India’s sixth appearance in the format at Uppal.
It comes as quite a surprise that the stadium’s ODI debut came way back in 2005 between India and South Africa when Rahul Dravid was the captain of the side.
Before this ground, India played its international matches at the Lal Bahadur Shastri Stadium in the city, which saw the birth of wristy stroke makers such as ML Jaisimha, Mohammad Azharuddin and VVS Laxman.
However, Uppal is a modernised stadium which became much sought for by the BCCI for Indian Premier League matches as well, increasing interest in cricket in the city.
Over the last 14 years, India have remembered this ground for some of their finest moments in the ODI format of the game, which involve the stalwarts of the game. Before Yuvraj Singh won his first IPL title for Sunrisers Hyderabad in 2016, he mastered this ground a decade before twice.
Then it was Sachin Tendulkar's turn to score a vintage ODI century in India to celebrate the completion of playing two decades of international cricket.
However, India managed to complete the much-awaited transition from individual to team success in Hyderabad. MS Dhoni in 2011 and Virat Kohli in 2014 both led from the front to ensure that.
As they say, the journey matters more than the destination. Fans remember the former more than the latter as well. Here are four of the biggest reasons why Hyderabad will remain etched in the memory of the most ardent of Indian cricket fans and players alike.