There are many stadiums that are popular all over the world in football but it is not the same case with cricket. Cricket stadiums are not as popular as the stadiums of Football but that doesn’t mean cricket stadiums don’t have any importance or presence. Now let us walk through 10 facts about India’s cricket stadium – Narendra Modi Stadium.
Built
Narendra Modi Stadium was built in 1982 in Gujarat, India. It was constructed to host cricket matches and cost the funding body around $110 million including the renovations of 2015.
Capacity
It has a capacity of 132,000 which makes it the 2nd largest stadium in the world and the largest cricket stadium in the world. Its seating capacity is 110,000 and the remaining 22,000 is standing.
Parking space
Being the 2nd largest stadium in the world this stadium also has a massive parking space. About 3,000 cars and 10,000 motorcycles can be parked in this stadium’s parking.
Corporate boxes
This stadium has around 76 corporate boxes which are also called VIP Boxes. All of them are air-conditioned which is necessary since India faces many hot summer days. Each box can seat around 25 people.
Many Bollywood personalities are usually seen in these boxes if the stadium hosts a semi-final or final of a World Cup.
Multi-purpose stadium
This stadium apart from its massive playing ground also has many other facilities such as a cricket academy, indoor pitches and facilities for other sports like football, baseball and hockey.
Use of LED lights
This stadium is the first and only stadium in India that has LED lights to light up the ground during night matches.
63 acres of occupying land
If a stadium has a Cricket academy, indoor pitches and facilities for other sports not forgetting its massive playground then it is obvious how much space it will occupy. This Narendra Modi Stadium occupies around 63 acres of land which is quite humongous.
Naming history
The original name of this stadium was Motera Stadium but during the inauguration of this stadium India’s President Ram Nath Kovind changed its name to Narendra Modi Stadium. Some people also say that this stadium was also called Sardar Patel stadium but this name is denied by some sources while others accept it.
First match
The first match in this stadium was hosted in 1984 which was a One Day International cricket match.
Ownership
This stadium was completely built by the Gujarat Cricket Association’s private funds and donations, no tax-payer money was used to construct the stadium and thus all the rights and ownership belongs to Gujarat Cricket Association.
