ODI World Cup 2023 Venues: Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium Capacity, Schedule & Pitch

The much-awaited ICC Cricket World Cup is knocking on the door. India is set to solely host the World's biggest cricketing event for the first time and both BCCI and ICC will make sure the tournament has a smooth proceeding in the next two months. The warm-up matches are scheduled to start on 29th September as teams will use these practice matches to get themselves acclimatised to the Indian condition.

The World Cup will commence on 5th October with the rematch of the last edition's final as New Zealand will take on England at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. As the World Cup is hovering on the horizon let's have a look at one of the top venues. 

Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad has been assigned as one of the venues for the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023.

ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 Games in Hyderabad 

October 6, 2023: Pakistan vs Netherlands

October 9, 2023: New Zealand vs Netherlands

October 6, 2023: Pakistan vs Sri Lanka

Also Read: ODI World Cup 2023 Venues: Dharamsala Stadium Capacity, WC Schedule, Pitch & More

History of the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Hyderabad

The Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad has been one of the iconic venues when it comes to Indian cricket. It has been the base of Sunrisers Hyderabad, one of the prominent IPL teams in action currently.

The Hyderabad Cricket Association used to host its matches at the Lal Bahadur Shastri Stadium which was primarily owned by the Sports Authority of Telangana.

The HCA then felt the need for a proper cricketing facility in the city and thus the stadium was built in 2005. Then Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu approved the project and later HCA had to pay a substantial fee to Visaka Industries who had the naming rights for the stadium.

The State of the Art venue first hosted an international match in 2005 when the Men in Blue took on South Africa in 2005.

ODI statistics of Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Hyderabad

(Image: BCCI)

The facilities at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Hyderabad

• Seating capacity of 55000
• VVS Laxman End, Pavilion End
• Stretched over 16 acres of land
• The stadium offers excellent practice facilities for both home and away teams
• The stadium is also equipped with one of the most advanced floodlights system
• New seats have been installed for better comfort of the spectators
• Spacious dressing rooms and corporate boxes are also an added attraction
• 14 practice pitches have provided the stadium with a new facelift

Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Hyderabad Pitch

Traditionally, the pitch here has been a slow track, and all the matches have been pretty high-scoring. The surface has the tendency of slowing down and spinners often get help from this turf. In the World Cup, the teams will enjoy batting on this flat track.

Here's how the pitch will favour teams batting 1st and 2nd

The average score in the first inning has been 288 while teams batting second have scored 262 runs on average. So teams batting second will have a tough time to endure on this surface.