Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium, Hyderabad

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Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium
Uppal Stadium
Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Uppal.jpg
Aerial view of the stadium
Ground information
LocationUppal, Hyderabad, Telangana, India
Coordinates17°24′23.4″N 78°33′01.6″E / 17.406500°N 78.550444°E / 17.406500; 78.550444
Establishment2003
Capacity55,000
OwnerHyderabad Cricket Association
ArchitectShashi Prabhu[1]
OperatorHyderabad Cricket Association
TenantsIndian Cricket Team
Hyderabad cricket team
Sunrisers Hyderabad
End names
Shiv lal Yadav End
VVS Laxman End
International information
First Test12 November 2010:
 India v  New Zealand
Last Test12 October 2018:
 India v  West Indies
First ODI16 November 2005:
 India v  South Africa
Last ODI2 March 2019:
 India v  Australia
First T20I13 October 2017:
 India v  Australia
Last T20I6 December 2019:
 India v  West Indies
As of 7 December 2019
Source: ESPN Cricinfo

The Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium is a cricket stadium in Hyderabad, Telangana, India. Located in the eastern suburb of Uppal, it has a capacity of 55,000 and extends across 16 acres (65,000 m2) of land. It serves as the home ground for the Hyderabad Cricket Association and the Indian Premier League team Sunrisers Hyderabad. As of 3 March 2019, it has hosted 5 Tests, 6 ODIs and 2 T20Is. This stadium hosted the opener and final of 2017 Indian Premier League, and also the final of 2019 Indian Premier League.

History[]

See also:

HCA's previous home ground was the Lal Bahadur Shastri Stadium in the Fateh Maidan sports complex at Basheerbagh in central Hyderabad. The ground belonged to the Sports Authority of Telangana State and HCA had limited operating autonomy over this ground.

Moreover, due to its smaller size, it soon came to be known as a high-scoring ground and so Hyderabad was not considered for many high-profile cricket matches in India.

In 2003, the proposal for a new stadium was submitted by HCA to the government of erstwhile Andhra Pradesh, then headed by N. Chandrababu Naidu. The proposal was quickly cleared and HCA was allocated a budget for the same. The government also identified a large piece of land suitable for the project at Uppal.

Most of the funding for the project came after an open auction of the stadium's title was held. Limited won the auction with a bid price of ₹65,00,00,000. A sum of ₹43,00,00,000 was paid in advance and the stadium was named as Visakha International Cricket Stadium in 2004.

By 2005 when most of the stadium was built, it was ready to host its first ODI Match between India and South Africa. However, Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy the former Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh(before separation of Telangana) decided to change the name of the stadium to Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium in memory of the former Prime Minister of India Rajiv Gandhi.

Following this decision, HCA was required to pay Visakha Industries six times the contract price in accordance with the contract clauses governing any subsequent renaming of the stadium or the Visakha name not remaining attached to the stadium. HCA however, following some negotiations by Govt, got away by paying an amount of ₹43,00,00,000, i.e. the contract price only.

The ends are named Pavilion End and North End. On the retirement of VVS Laxman, the HCA decided to honour the veteran by naming the North End after him.[citation needed]

Stats & Records[]

Matches Hosted
  • Test — 5
  • ODI — 6
  • T20I — 2

Records[]

Ground capacity & factors[]

  • The stadium extends across 16 acres and has a seating capacity of 55,000 spectators. The ends are Pavilion End and North End (V.V.S. Laxman end).
  • A stand was named after Newly appointed Hyderabad Cricket Association President Mohammad Azharuddin and opened on 6 December 2019.
  • Floodlights are mounted on six towers to illuminate the stadium during day-night matches having been commissioned in April 2007.
  • The wicket here is considered as a flat track, with a reputation of being a batsman-friendly and high-scoring pitch.[by whom?]
A Panoramic view of Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium

Sunrisers Hyderabad[]

SRH fans during an IPL match

Sunrisers Hyderabad is a cricket franchise based in Hyderabad by the IPL Governing Council. The team is owned by Kalanithi Maran of the Sun TV Network. Kane Williamson is the captain of the team. Trevor Bayliss is the head coach and Brad Haddin is the assistant coach of the team. VVS Laxman is the mentor of the team while Muttiah Muralitharan was the bowling coach of the team. The team won the 2016 IPL season.

The team jersey was unveiled on 8 March 2013, and the team anthem directed by GV Prakash Kumar was released on 12 March 2013. Their logo was unveiled on 20 December 2012, along with the announcement that the team's management would be led by Kris, Tom Moody and VVS Laxman.

The stadium suffered from a jinx of losing matches for the home team. Deccan Chargers lost all their matches in 2008 Indian Premier League. So the management had decided to change the dressing room position of the home team and also installed a sculpture of Lord Ganesha who is the god for success and the efforts of the management finally resulted in a win for India in the next match beating England with a margin of over a hundred runs. India won 4 out of 5 test matches hosted at this venue (1 Drawn). It also turned the fortunes of Sunrisers Hyderabad with almost all wins at home.

In IPL 2019, Hyderabad Cricket Association won the award for best ground and pitch.

Test cricket[]

It was the 101st venue for Test matches in world cricket.[3]

Stadium Records[]

  • Umesh Yadav recorded his first 10 wicket-haul in his Test career at this ground on 12 October 2018 against West Indies.
  • Ravichandran Ashwin recorded the first 10 wicket-haul in Tests at this ground on 23 August 2012 against New Zealand.

Test Matches Records[]

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