Sharjah Cricket Stadium

Sharjah Cricket Stadium

Sharjah Cricket Ground
Ground information
Location	Sharjah, United Arab Emirates
Coordinates	25°19′50.96″N 55°25′15.44″E / 25.3308222°N 55.4209556°E / 25.3308222; 55.4209556Coordinates: 25°19′50.96″N 55°25′15.44″E / 25.3308222°N 55.4209556°E / 25.3308222; 55.4209556
Establishment	1982
Capacity	15,000
Tenants	Team Years UAE Afghanistan Pakistan 1982 – present 2010 – 2016 2011 – present
End names
Pavilion End Sharjah Club End
International information
First Test	31 January – 4 February 2002:  Pakistan v  West Indies
Last Test	30 October – 3 November 2016:  Pakistan v  West Indies
First ODI	6 April 1984:  Pakistan v  Sri Lanka
Last ODI	30 September 2016:  Pakistan v  West Indies
First T20I	3 March 2013:  Afghanistan v  Scotland
Last T20I	10 January 2016:  Afghanistan v  Zimbabwe
As of 30 October 2016 Source: ESPNcricinfo

The Sharjah Cricket Stadium (Arabic:لشارقة جمعية ملعب الكريكيت) is in the emirate of Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates. It was originally constructed in the early 1980s and has been much improved over the years. In 2010, at the behest of local cricketing patron Abdul Rahman Bukhatir, the Sharjah Cricket Stadium became the home ground for the Afghanistan cricket team for One Day International and First-Class matches. In 2016, Afghanistan changed their home ground to Greater Noida Sports Complex Ground in Noida, India.

Sharjah cricket stadium is one of the few Test Cricket Grounds at which a Test match has been played not involving a home country participant (and the only one in a non-Test playing country) Sharjah was the venue for four Test matches in 2002. Because of security and safety concerns in Pakistan and its aftermath) the ground was chosen as a neutral venue to host two Test matches between Pakistan and the West Indies in February and two Test matches between Pakistan and Australia in October.

The fifth Test match held at the ground took place in November 2011, as the third Test between Sri Lanka and Pakistan. The other games in the series were played at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi and Dubai International Cricket Stadium.

Between 1984 and 2003 the Sharjah ground was the venue for 206 One Day Internationals held as part of commercially sponsored one day tournaments involving three or four international teams. Sharjah was a popular venue attracting good crowds mostly from the South Asian population of the United Arab Emirates. The tournaments were organised by "The Cricketers Benefit Fund Series (CBFS)" which had been established in 1981 by Abdul Rahman Bukhatir, and whose main aim was to honour cricketers of the past and present generations from India and Pakistan, with benefit purses in recognition of their services to the game of cricket. The stadium initially started with a few limited seats and very modest facilities but by 2002 had a 27,000 capacity and floodlights.