Sheikh Zayed cricket stadium is located in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates; Named after President His Highness Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan. It was opened in May 2004, and its cost was around 23 Million dollars. It is the property of The Emirates cricket board.
| Built In: | 2004 |
| Capacity: | 20,000 |
| Home Teams: | UAE Cricket Team Afghanistan Cricket Team |
| End Names: | North End Pavilion End |
| Ground Size: | 135 Meters |
| Boundary Length: | 76M Long on 65M Straight 77M Long off |
Table of Contents
History
Many nations have used this stadium as an adopted Home ground, Such as Pakistan and Afghanistan. Pakistan played most of the cricket in UAE in the last ten years, and many of those matches were played on this ground. Interestingly this cricket stadium has also hosted friendly Football matches.
Capacity
The stadium has a large stand at either end With a VIP box for players. It also offers additional grass seating that does not feel exciting under the scorching heat, but it never stops spectators from enjoying the match. The seating capacity of this stadium is up to 20,000.
Seating Plan
The east and west wing of the stadium is covered with green grass and provides a spectacular view. North and south side of this ground contains grandstand (East and west), premium stand (east and west), and panoramic stand. They are also surrounded by a media and VIP box.
Parking
It offers decent and ample parking. The area is spacious surrounded by sand in the desert; try to park near gate 2 of the stadium so you can get the tickets quickly. But if you already bought the ticket online, park wherever you want because the ground has eight gates, always near the car.
Pitch Report
Much like all the ground in UAE, this pitch is no different than other stadiums in UAE. With dry and humid weather, the pitch offers no or too little grass, resulting in low bounce and slow Pace of the deck. Spinners to get assistance from pitch after patches are formed after the 2nd or 3rd day of a test match. In shorter formats, the pitch is a batting paradise with small boundary on the square of the wicket matches are mostly high scoring.
Records & Notable Events
The inaugural first-class match was played here between Scotland and Kenya in November 2004. Apart from that, many notable and high-profile series were played here which I’ve listed some moments.
- The Arch-rivals India and Pakistan set their differences aside and played back-to-back charity matches on this ground for 2005 Earthquake relief.
- When Covid-19 hit India, the BCCI could not host the IPL in India due to the dire situation. So India chose this ground to play matches of IPL from 19 September to 10 November 2020.
- The 2009 series between Pakistan and Sri Lanka is a notable event in which terrorists attacked Sri Lanka’s team. Later on, that series of matches were played in Sheikh Zayed cricket stadium.
- As the Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium has drop-in pitches, the stadium can also be used as a football ground. It was used for a friendly Football match between Thailand and Oman, which Oman won quite comfortably by 0-2.
- Some matches from the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022 were played on this ground.
| First Test: | 20 – 24 November 2010 |
| First ODI: | 18 April 2006 |
| First T20I: | 10 February 2010 |
| Highest T20I Score: | 225/7 by IRE vs AFG (2013) |
| Lowest T20I Score: | 134/10 by IRE vs UAE (2016) |
| Highest ODI Score: | 313/9 by PAK vs SL (2007) |
| Lowest ODI Score: | 232/8 by PNG vs UAE (2017) |
| Highest Test Score: | 598/9D by ENG vs PAK (2015) |
| Lowest Test Score: | 145/10 by AUS Vs PAK (2018) |
Upcoming Events
Some upcoming exciting matches of various leagues will be held at Sheikh Zayed Stadium; they will be worth the wait.
- It will also be the venue for the 2022 ICC Men T20 World Cup matches. The matches in this venue will be starting from 18 October 2021.
Oct 18, Mon – Ireland vs Netherlands – 02:00 PM (LOCAL)
Oct 18, Mon – Sri Lanka vs Namibia – 06:00 PM (LOCAL)
Oct 20, Wed – Namibia vs Netherlands – 02:00 PM (LOCAL)
Oct 20, Wed – Sri Lanka vs Ireland – 06:00 PM (LOCAL)
Oct 23, Sat – Australia vs South Africa – 02:00 PM (LOCAL)
Oct 27, Wed – England vs B2 – 02:00 PM (LOCAL)
Oct 27, Wed – B1 vs A2 – 06:00 PM (LOCAL)
Oct 31, Sun – Afghanistan vs A2 – 02:00 PM (LOCAL)
Nov 02, Tue – South Africa vs B2 – 02:00 PM (LOCAL)
Nov 02, Tue – Pakistan vs A2 – 06:00 PM (LOCAL)
Nov 03, Wed – India vs Afghanistan – 06:00 PM (LOCAL)
Nov 04, Thu – West Indies vs A1 – 06:00 PM (LOCAL)
Nov 06, Sat – Australia vs West Indies – 02:00 PM (LOCAL)
Nov 07, Sun – New Zealand vs Afghanistan – 02:00 PM (LOCAL)
Nov 10, Wed – TBC vs TBC – 06:00 PM (LOCAL)
Map/Location
Here is the complete address of Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium:
Near Khalifa City A, Abu Dhabi
United Arab Emirates
