Though the Wankhede Stadium has been familiar to Mumbai’s cricket lovers for decades, it was always out of bounds for the common man on non-match days. However, as the MCA Sharad Pawar Cricket Museum opens to the public on Sunday (October 19), fans can now soak in the iconic venue through a stadium tour which is part of the experience.
The stadium tour, which can be booked online, also includes a visit to the two dressing rooms, where almost every top cricketer of the world, including Mumbai’s icons like Sunil Gavaskar, Sachin Tendulkar, Ravi Shastri, Dilip Vengsarkar and many others, have spent exciting moments.
Inside the museum, fans can admire some interesting memorabilia gifted by around 40 Mumbai cricketers, who went on to represent the country. There is a Quiz Arena too where fans can test their cricket knowledge. Also, the Dr HD Kanga Memorial Library, which comprises around 10,000 books, is a treasure trove of information.
Visitors can also visit The Cricket Theatre to revive memories of Kapil Dev outclassing the West Indies in the final of the 1983 World Cup at Lord’s, or more recently, the MS Dhoni-led Indian team beating Sri Lanka in the 2011 ODI World Cup final at Wankhede. The museum also holds all 42 trophies of Mumbai’s record-breaking Ranji-winning feat. mid-day’s Deputy Editor Clayton Murzello serves on the museum’s Advisory Board. “The museum and its memorabilia tell the story of Mumbai cricket,” MCA president Ajinkya Naik told mid-day.