In India, there are many iconic stadiums but none is comparable to Wankhede stadium that is one of the best stadiums worldwide.
It’s an interesting story it makes it more historic.
In the early days, the CCI (Cricket Club of India) owned the Brabourne stadium and
It was born out of a tussle between the Bombay Cricket Association (currently Mumbai Cricket Association) and the Brabourne Stadium’s caretakers – the Cricket Club of India – over seating capacity, to arrange matches and for allocation of tickets.
Before the Wankhede stadium was established, cricket matches in Bombay as it was called then – used to take place at the Brabourne.
Due to that contention, things get complicated for the 1973 India vs England test match. So, S.K. Wankhede a politician and secretary on BCA took the plunge to build a new stadium not too far from Brabourne stadium. It was completed in approx thirteen months and opened for India vs England test match in 1975.
Now, this stadium is home to the richest cricket board in the world & has become the epitome of Mumbai.
13 Facts about Wankhede Stadium Mumbai
- On this ground, the first test match was played against West Indies in 1975.
- In 1987, the first ODI played here played between India and Sri Lanka where India beats Sri Lanka by 10 runs in a memorable contest, one that provided the highest runs-per-over quotient in international cricket. Mohammad Azharuddin’s unbeaten 108 took India to 299, but Sri Lanka replied with bravado through Roshan Mahanama s 98 and a brisk 34 from Asanka Gurusinha. Finally, India managed to win.
- This stadium stands named after legendary players such as Sunil Gavaskar, Sachin Tendulkar, etc.
- In 2011, India won the World Cup against Sri Lanka on this ground which holds a great memory for everyone.
- Sachin Tendulkar’s last match, a test match against West Indies was played in this stadium and it also holds the memory of a great batsman’s farewell to remember.
- On 10 Jan 1985, before Yuvraj Singh, Ravi Shastri hit the 6 sixes in an over.
- On 5 Nov 1987, the last match of Sunil Gavaskar and also the match against Pakistan held for the semi-finals but lost.
- On 27 Feb 1996, we got saw Mark Waugh who became the first man to score consecutive centuries in World Cup but in the same match, Sachin Tendulkar also showed his batting skills but still, India lost the match.
- On 22 Feb 1993, Vinod Kambli scored 224 runs in a test match against England in this stadium.
- The stadium’s total cost in making is 300 crore (2010 renovation).
- Its capacity was 44,000 in year 1974 and 38,000 in 2010.
- Its Dimensions are 35,000 Sqmt (2010 renovation).
- One of the highlights of the stadium is the suspended cantilever roofs. The Teflon fabric roof is lighter in weight and heat resistant. There is no beam support for the roof to ensure that the spectators will have a better view. On the roof, there are some exhaust fans that absorb the hot air from the stands and allow the breeze from the West to flow in.
