Eden Gardens, Kolkata is not just another cricket ground in India, established in 1864 it is a historic and one of the most iconic stadiums of the world. Often hailed as the “Mecca” of Indian cricket. Over the years it has witnessed lots of memorable matches and incidents. All the top players around the world want’s to play at least once, at this iconic venue, such as the aura of the place. Needless to say, it has hosted the highest number of International matches in India including two ICC world cup finals ( 1987 ODI world cup and 2016 T20 world cup). It is also the home ground of Bengal Cricket team and IPL franchise Kolkata Knight Riders.
Though Eden is a cricket stadium it has hosted some crucial and engaging football matches too. Before Salt Lake stadium, it used to be the home ground for Mohun Bagan and East Bengal, two of the most famous football clubs of India.
Crowd and Experience :
Watching a match at the Eden Gardens is quite an experience, one has to be there to feel the atmosphere. It is just a surreal experience, to say the least. When seventy thousand spectators cheer for you as a player you get that adrenaline rush and excitement to perform well. And that is the reason why every player wants to play here, to showcase their skill in front of such a wonderful crowd. Spectators of Eden love their cricket. They not only support their home team but also appreciate opponents as well. People here love to see good quality cricket, as a foreign player if you do well they don’t hesitate to applaud. The great Australian captain Steve Waugh considers Eden Gardens as the "Lords" of sub-continent.
Some Memorable Moments :
The first official test match played at this venue between India and England back in 1934. In 1946 after taking part in World War II one of the best all-rounders in the world Keith Miller came with the Australian Services XI team to play against India. Although it was an unofficial test match, that was the first time Eden saw great Miller in action. West Indian Great Everton Weekes scored two brilliant hundreds in both innings of the third test match at Eden Gardens in 1948 series. By doing so became the first ever batsman to have scored five consecutive hundreds in the same number of test innings. Another West Indian Batsman Rohan Kanhai played one of his best innings here at the Gardens, scoring 256 against India in 1958-59 series.
After being reinstated by ICC, South Africa played their first match here. Great South African leader Nelson Mandela was there to witness the historic game. Australia won the world cup in 1987 for the very first time, when they defeated England in a closely contested game at this iconic venue.
Who could forget the historic test match between India and Australia in 2001, following on India were up against it after the loss of first wicket Sourav Ganguly sent V.V.S Laxman to bat at number 3. Laxman and Rahul Dravid batted entire day 4 without losing any wicket. India went on to win that famous test match, probably the best ever match played in the test history till now. West Indies won their second world T20 title at this very ground in 2016.
The king of football Pele played for New York Cosmos, against Mohun Bagan in 1977 at the Eden Gardens. It was a historic occasion and the match ended in a (2-2) draw.
Crucial Stats:
Highest Run Scorer in Test - V.V.S Laxman (1,217)
Highest Individual Score in Test - V.V.S Laxman (281)
Highest Number of wickets in Test - Harbhajan Singh (46)
Highest Partnership - Dravid & Laxman (376) for the 5th Wicket
Highest Team Total in Test - India (657-7 ) against Australia
Lowest Total in an Innings - India (90 all out) against West Indies
Hat-Tricks - Kapil Dev, Kuldeep Yadav (Odi's) & Harbhajan Singh (test)
Highest Individual Score in ODI - Rohit Sharma (264) against Sri Lanka
