Chepauk Stadium facts for kids

Chepauk Stadium (officially known as the M. A. Chidambaram Stadium) is a famous cricket ground in Chennai, India. People usually call it Chepauk (say "CHEH-pawk"). This stadium was built in 1916, making it the oldest cricket ground in India that's still used today! Its official name honors M. A. Chidambaram, who used to be the head of the BCCI (Board of Control for Cricket in India). Before that, it was called the Madras Cricket Club Ground. Chepauk is the home ground for the Tamil Nadu cricket team and the Indian Premier League team, the Chennai Super Kings. Many important matches have happened here. The first Test match was played on February 10, 1934. It also hosted the very first Ranji Trophy match in 1936. India even won its first-ever Test match here in 1952 against England! A super exciting match happened in 1986 between India and Australia, which was only the second "Tied Test" in cricket history. As of August 19, 2017, the stadium has hosted 32 Test matches, 21 One Day Internationals (ODIs), and 1 Twenty20 International (T20I).

The Chepauk Crowd

The fans at Chepauk are known for being very fair and supportive. They are considered some of the most appreciative crowds in India. For example, in 1997, when Saeed Anwar scored an amazing 194 runs for Pakistan against India, the crowd gave him a standing ovation! This was the highest score ever in an ODI at that time. Again, in 1999, when Pakistan won a Test match here, the Pakistani team walked around the field to thank the fans for their great sportsmanship.

Stadium Records

Many records have been set at Chepauk Stadium.

Team Records

• India holds the record for the highest score on this ground. They scored a massive 759 runs for 7 wickets (declared) against England in 2016.
• India also holds the record for the lowest score here. England bowled them out for just 83 runs.
• In One Day Internationals (ODIs), Pakistan made the highest score of 327 runs for 5 wickets in 1997.
• India's score of 299 runs for 8 wickets against South Africa in 2015 is the second highest ODI score here. India successfully defended this score.

Player Records

• In Test matches, Sunil Gavaskar has scored the most runs at Chepauk with 1018 runs. Sachin Tendulkar is second with 876 runs, and Gundappa Vishwanath is third with 785 runs.
• For wickets in Test matches, Anil Kumble has taken the most with 48 wickets. Kapil Dev is next with 40 wickets, followed by Harbhajan Singh with 39 wickets.
• In ODIs, Yuvraj Singh has scored the most runs here with 255 runs.
• Mohammad Rafique has taken the most wickets in ODIs with 14 wickets. Ajit Agarkar is the top Indian bowler for wickets here.

Special Moments at Chepauk

Chepauk Stadium has seen many unforgettable moments in cricket history:

• The very first match of the Ranji Trophy, India's top domestic cricket tournament, was played here on November 4, 1934. It was between Madras and Mysore.
• India won its first-ever Test match in 1952 against England, right here at Chepauk. This was a huge moment for Indian cricket!
• In 1986, the second "Tied Test" in cricket history happened here between India and Australia. A Tied Test is super rare, meaning both teams scored the exact same number of runs!
• In 1983, Sunil Gavaskar scored his 30th Test century here. This broke the record held by the legendary Don Bradman for the most centuries in Test cricket at that time.
• Narendra Hirwani took an amazing 8 wickets for just 61 runs against the West Indies in January 1988. This was his very first Test match! It's the best bowling performance by an Indian on their Test debut. He took 16 wickets in the whole match, which is a record for any bowler on debut.
• In 1997, Saeed Anwar of Pakistan scored 194 runs against India. At that time, this was the highest score ever made in a One Day International match.
• On October 15, 2004, Shane Warne passed Muttiah Muralitharan's record of 532 Test wickets to become the highest wicket-taker in Test history at that time.
• Virender Sehwag scored an incredible 319 runs against South Africa in April 2008. He reached 300 runs in just 278 balls, making it the fastest triple century in Test history! He became only the third batsman ever to score two triple centuries in Test cricket.
• Sachin Tendulkar has scored more runs at Chepauk than at any other stadium in India. He has 876 runs in nine Tests here, with an average of 87.60 runs per innings.
• In March 2001, India beat Australia by 2 wickets here to win the Border Gavaskar Trophy. This win also ended Australia's amazing 16-match winning streak in Test matches.
• In December 2008, India successfully chased down 387 runs for 4 wickets in the fourth innings against England. This became the highest successful run chase ever in a Test match in India.
• MS Dhoni became the first Indian wicket-keeper batsman to score a double century (200 runs or more) in a Test match here in February 2013 against Australia. It was also the highest score by a wicket-keeper captain.
• Karun Nair scored an unbeaten 303 runs against England in December 2016. India declared their innings at 759 runs for 7 wickets. Karun Nair became the second Indian (after Virender Sehwag) and the sixth youngest batsman in the world to score 300 runs in a Test match.

Images for kids

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  M. A. Chidambaram Stadium during an India vs Pakistan ODI match.

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  Newly renovated stands with fabric tensile roofs

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  M. A. Chidambaram Stadium

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  M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in the Night