Feroz Shah Kotla is a cricket ground located in New Delhi, India. It is the second oldest stadium in India after Eden Gardens in Kolkata.
Feroz Shah Kotla has the capacity to hold 41,820 spectators. It is home to the Delhi Cricket team and the Indian Premier League franchise Delhi Daredevils.
History
The stadium was established in the year 1883 and is run by the Delhi Districts Cricket Association (DDCA). The stadium gets its name from its location “Feroz Shah Kotla”.
The ground was built by Sultan Shah Tughlaq as an established for the colonel people to play the game and was officially inaugurated by then the viceroy of India, The Earl of Willingdon.
Initially no Indians were allowed to play in the ground. It was only after the independence they were given permission to play in the stadium.
India hosted its first ever Test match after independence at this venue. India played against West Indies in the year 1948 which ended in a draw.
India played its first ODI at this venue in 1982 against Sri Lanka where India won the match by 6 wickets.
Major Matches
In 1952, Indian batsman Hemu Adhikari and Ghulam Ahmed recorded the highest 10th wicket partnership against Pakistan where they managed to score 109 runs, a record which is still unbroken.
In 1983-84, Sunil Gavaskar scored his 29th Test century equalling the record of Sir Don Bradman. In 1999-2000, Anil Kumble picked up all the ten wickets in the 4th innings of the Test against Pakistan which made him the first Indian and second player in the game’s history to achieve such a feat.
Coincidentally, Sachin Tendulkar broke Sunil Gavaskar’s record of 34 Test centuries by scoring his 35th century in 2005 at this very venue.
Controversies
In December 2009, an ODI match between India and Sri Lanka was called off due to dangerous pitch reported by the match referee. The stadium was therefore banned for 12 months before it returned to host the 2011 World Cup matches.
In December 2017, Sri Lankan players played the Test match against India wearing pollution masks and players also got sick, which sparked a controversy. The high pollution in the Indian capital caused such a rare incident.
Recent Matches
India played Sri Lanka in the last Test match played here on December, 2017. Last ODI played here was on October 2016 when India hosted New Zealand.
