With India set to host the 2023 Cricket World Cup, Gujarat has found itself amidst the country's preparations with Ahmedabad likely to host the tournament final in its new stadium with a 1.10 lakh capacity, which will replace the historic Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Stadium. It will also be the world's biggest cricket facility.
Union home minister Amit Shah, who is also the president of Gujarat Cricket Association (GCA), explained to TOI that the stadium is a vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, stating that it was his dream that the state and country would have a world-class infrastructure and cricketing facility, so that it could inspire billions of aspiring cricketers. Shah also feels that the work will be completed in a few months.
The construction of the stadium began on 2017, with the older structure taking around nine months to bring down. The facility is built over 65 acres on River Sabarmati's banks, where the original stadium was there. The new infrastructure includes a main stadium, two additional cricket fields, a multi-sport facility for various disciplines. It will also have a metro station, swimming pools and a sports academy.
"At first the idea was to put the stadium up for renovation. A good 30 years had passed and it was time to redo the existing infrastructure. We made a presentation and took it to our (then) president Modi (who was GCA president until 2013) but he had a different vision. It was his idea that we should bring down the entire structure and start once again from scratch. His only suggestion was that whatever we do, it should be on a big scale and be one of the best in the world. That's how we began envisaging the project back then (2013 onwards)", said Rajya Sabha MP and GCA vice-president Parimal Nathwani, who oversaw the construction.
