The new Sardar Patel Stadium, built at a cost of Rs 700 crore after the demolition of Motera's old building, could host more fans than Australia's Melbourne Cricket Ground, which has a capacity of just over one lakh.
The world's largest cricket stadium in Ahmedabad is likely to have a capacity to host 1.10 Lakh supporters ready to host its first match next March: the game between Asia XI and World XI may be the opening game if the ICC accepts the Indian cricket board's request. The new Sardar Patel Stadium, built at a cost of Rs 700 crore after the demolition of Motera's old building, could host more fans than Australia's Melbourne Cricket Ground, with a capacity of just over one lakh.
Jay Shah, son of trade union home Amit Shah, and the current secretary of the Board of Control for Cricket(BCCI) speaks of the stadium as Prime Minister Narendra Modi's is expected to be at the opening of the new stadium. Now that he has received confirmation from the Gujarat Cricket Association about the stadium's preparation, Sourav Ganguly, president of the BCCI, said he would seek ICC approval for the opening match in March.
"There will be a game of Asia XI vs. World XI, but it will be subject to the approval of the International Cricket Council," Ganguly told the Indian Express after the ICC's annual meeting in Mumbai on Sunday. The board and GCA want to see the best stars in the world under one roof. The Motera Stadium will more than double the capacity of the 54,000 people as compared to the old buildings. Covering an area of 63 acres, it features a club with at least 50 rooms, an Olympic swimming pool and 73 corporate boxes.
It will also feature an indoor cricket academy and three players' training areas. Construction of the stadium began in January 2017.
The place is near the metro station, only 300 meters away. The structure is also renowned for its earthquake resistance and will have LED lights instead of normal lights as seen in other stadiums. Sardar Patel Stadium was a place for highly regarded Indian records: Sunil Gavaskar here became the first batsman in history to pass 10,000 test runs and is also where Kapil Dev overtook Richard Hadley's wicket tally with his 432nd test wicket. Modi was the former chairman of the GCA, while Amit Shah was its former chairman. The prominent association recently received its highest representation in the BCCI when Jay was elected secretary last month. A former GCA Joint Secretary, Jay, will now be present at the meeting of the ICC's Chief Executive Committee (CEC).
For the CEC, the rule is Minister Jay to come and attend the meeting. As for the representative of the International Cricket Council, we will decide within two days. "
Sardar Patel Stadium has come a long way since 1983 when it organized its first test against the West Indies. In 1992, when the former deputy Chief Minister of Gujarat, Narhari Amin, took over as head of GCA, the bank balance was only 356 rupees, according to Amin. After a few years to raise funds, the association showed Sarfarosh in a local car, Amin told The Week. These days, there is no financial crisis associated with a modern stadium that will open in a few months.
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