20 May,2025 09:55 AM IST | Mumbai | Nadim Memon
Youngsters playing cricket at Azad Maidan in South Mumbai earlier this month. File pic/Atul Kamble
Mumbai, the spiritual home of Indian cricket, is a city where talent rises not from plush academies, but from its open, sunburnt maidans. Grounds like Oval Maidan, Azad Maidan, Cross Maidan, Dadkar Maidan (Matunga), and Shivaji Park have raised generations of cricketers. They are not just fields - they are Mumbai's cricketing soul, rich in legacy and local pride.
Over decades, I have watched legends like Ajit Wadekar, Dilip Vengsarkar, Sandeep Patil, Sachin Tendulkar, and Vinod Kambli rise from these very grounds - honing their skills under the gaze of streetlights, amid the hum of community life. I have curated pitches across Mumbai, India, and internationally, but the heartbeat of Indian cricket has always been rooted in these simple, dusty maidans.
Today, it breaks my heart to see them neglected, encroached upon, and reduced to multi-purpose venues for everything but sport. These grounds are now staging commercial marathons, markets, political rallies, and political and religious events - while basic sporting needs like turf maintenance, drainage, infrastructure, and equipment access go unmet. In addition to commercial misuse, these maidans are also being encroached upon by state bodies like MMRDA and the police. The MMRDA Metro work has taken over 17 plots at Azad Maidan, while the police have taken away Fort Vijay Club and regularly use these spaces for morchas and bandobast operations. What should be sacred turf for aspiring cricketers is now cordoned off or repurposed without regard for its legacy or purpose.
Meanwhile, recently the chief minister of Maharashtra said if the Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) comes up with a proposal then the government will allocate a good piece of land for MCA to build a 1 lakh-capacity stadium. But I ask this - for whom is this new stadium being built?
We already have: The Wankhede Stadium, with a capacity of 32,000, iconic and central to Mumbai's cricketing identity.
The Brabourne Stadium (CCI), one of the finest in India with a 40,000 capacity.
The DY Patil Stadium, ranked among the top 10 stadiums globally, with world-class pitches and a capacity of 55,000.
MCA and BCCI don't host IPL or Test matches regularly in the last two mentioned stadiums.
The issue is not infrastructure or capacity - it's inclusivity. When the IPL arrives, things are different for not only fans, who have to shell out far more than what they would for high profile cricket in other formats. Past and present Test and Ranji Trophy cricketers find it hard to get complimentary tickets which they deserve. At times, even Test players find it difficult and the MCA appears helpless in the BCCI/franchise-based system.
The Mumbai public is being given step-motherly treatment - locked out of the very sport they've nurtured from the grassroots.
Instead of pouring hundreds of crores into another elite venue, I urge the government and MCA to turn their gaze back to improving the maidans. These grounds don't need grandstands or VIP boxes - they need working toilets, drinking water facility, proper infrastructure, regular maintenance, safety nets, and access for underprivileged youth. A modest investment here will yield far greater returns for Indian cricket.
These maidans are Mumbai's nurseries. They're where dreams begin. Let's not forget that the legends we worship today - Ajit Wadekar, Dilip Vengsarkar, Sandeep Patil, Tendulkar, Gavaskar, Rohit Sharma - were all once maidan boys.
We must protect these spaces before we lose them completely. Let the legacy of Mumbai cricket continue from where it started - not from another concrete fortress, but from the heart of the people. Preserve the maidans. Empower the grass roots.
Reclaim Mumbai's cricketing conscience.
17
No. of plots Metro has taken over at Azad Maidan
Nadim Memon was once a Wankhede Stadium curator, MCA's Maidan Secretary and Apex Council member. He is presently the cricket secretary of the Mumbai Schools Sports Association (MSSA)
