The Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium located in Hyderabad, Telangana, has hosted many international and domestic matches. As you might have guessed, it is named after the former Indian Prime Minister, Rajiv Gandhi. Let us take a brief look at the history and statistics of this stadium.
Overview
The Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium, also known as Uppal Stadium, has been hosting international matches for a long time but it was in the 2023 ODI World Cup when the ground was selected for the first time as a venue for any ICC event. Here you can see some additional details about this venue:
| Also Known As | Visaka International Cricket Stadium |
| Location | Uppal, Hyderabad, Telangana |
| Owner | Hyderabad Cricket Association (HCA) |
| Establishment | 2004 |
| Capacity | 55,000 |
| Pitch | Grass |
International Matches
Here are the first and last matches of different forms of cricket matches that have been organized in the Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium Stadium:
| First Test | 12–16 November 2010 | India vs New Zealand |
| Last Test | 25–28 January 2024 | India vs England |
| First ODI | 16 November 2005 | India vs South Africa |
| Last ODI | 10 October 2023 | Pakistan vs Sri Lanka |
| First T20I | 6 December 2019 | India vs West Indies |
| Last T20I | 25 September 2022 | India vs Australia |
Domestic Cricket
The Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium regularly hosts domestic matches. In tournaments like the Vijay Hazare Trophy and Ranji Trophy, it is the home ground of the Hyderabad cricket team. While in the Indian Premier League, this cricket ground used to be the home ground of Deccan Charges in earlier seasons but now the tenant has changed.
As of 2024, the IPL franchise, Sunrisers Hyderabad call this venue their home. It has witnessed many historic moments in IPL history and probably the most special one happened recently. Just a few days ago on 27 March, the Sunrisers Hyderabad scored 277 runs against the Mumbai Indians and set the record for highest team total in the history of IPL.
The final matches of the 2017 and 2019 seasons were held here. In 2019, the Hyderabad Cricket Association also won the award for the best ground and pitch in IPL. Here you can see the IPL stats on this ground:
| Matches Played | 71 |
| Teams Won Batting First | 40 |
| Teams Won Chasing | 31 |
| No result | 0 |
| Average First Innings Score | 159 |
| Highest Team Total | 231 |
| Highest Total Chased | 217 |
Pitch Report
This cricket stadium helps slow bowlers as the match progresses and the pitch is also well known for its flat wickets. We have witnessed many times how the chasing team dominates the game and that’s why the toss winners often prefer bowling first on this pitch.
History
Hyderabad Cricket Association (HCA) used to host matches at Lal Bahadur Shastri Stadium before the current stadium was constructed. But it was under the control of the Sports Authority of Andhra Pradesh and HCA didn’t have much authority. Therefore they decided to build their cricket stadium.
In 2003, HCA was granted permission by the government of Andhra Pradesh to build a new stadium in Uppal. In the auction, Visaka Industries Limited placed the highest bid for the stadium’s title and thus it was named “Visakha International Cricket Stadium”. However, later Chief Minister Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddyname renamed it to “Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium” in honor of the former Prime Minister of India.
After renaming the stadium, HCA negotiated to pay Visakha Industries the original contract price. It was established in 2004 and hosted many domestic matches. But it took six years before the fans witnessed an international match being held on this pitch. It was a test match played between India and New Zealand on 12-16 November 2010.
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