IPL 2020 final likely to take place in Ahmedabad's revamped Motera Stadium: Report

The Sardar Patel Stadium in Ahmedabad, also known as Motera Stadium, is considered among the best cricket stadiums in the country. It’s also on the verge of becoming the largest cricket stadium in the world. The stadium is currently nearing the completion of its big scale renovation and will most likely be ready by early 2020. Recently, a leading Indian journalist claimed at an event that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) are planning to host the IPL 2020 final in the stadium.

Also Read | Virat Kohli, AB De Villiers Are My Dream Wickets: Pakistan Pacer Usman Shinwari

IPL 2020 final venue to change?

At the moment, the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) is the largest cricket stadium in the world with a seating capacity of over 100,000. Once renovated, the Motera Stadium will have a capacity to accommodate approximately 110,000 people as opposed to the MCG’s capacity of 100,000. It will also be more than double the capacity of the previous Motera ground, which could hold only 49,000 people.

Also Read | Sri Lanka 'safe' To Tour For England, According To Kumar Sangakkara

BCCI have also been planning to organise a T20 game between the Indian team and World XI as a first match in the newly developed stadium in March 2020. Even though the IPL 2020 schedule is yet to be finalised, the final of the upcoming T20 mega-event could well become the second cricket match to be organised at the venue.  The work at Motera Stadium is slated to be completed by January next year, i.e. well in time before IPL 2020 kicks off a few months later.

Also Read | Ricky Ponting Expresses His Displeasure Over Umpire's Inability To Spot No-balls

The last time India played an international game at the Motera was in 2014, when India faced Sri Lanka for an ODI match. The final of the previous edition of the IPL was played between Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings at the Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium in Hyderabad. If the IPL 2020 is organised at a stadium, it will become the 8th different venue to host an IPL final across 13 seasons. However, it remains to be seen if the Mumbai Indians would agree if the BCCI actually gives a go-ahead for Ahmedabad to host the final since Mumbai have the right to do so after entering the tournament as defending champions.

Also Read | India Vs World XI T20 Match Could Be First Game At New Motera Stadium