Cricket Grounds in UAE

21 January 2023

The United Arab Emirates is a land of opportunities packed with numerous astonishing buildings filled with life luxuries. While talking about marvellous establishments, how can we leave behind the crowded cricket stadiums that have hosted international tournaments throughout the years? UAE is the favourite and first-choice country of millions of people around the globe. Hence, due to online earning facilities and corporate business services, this land on earth has helped individuals to resettle their left-out lives. For instance, Dubai graphic designing services and UAE assignment help in writing have provided open platforms for individuals to earn daily wages. With all the accessibilities, this country doesn’t leave any chance to furnish entertainment ventures for the locals. So, today, we are going to explore a few of the finest cricket grounds that have showcased major sports and entertainment events

Top 5 International Grounds in UAE 

After the temporary ban on Pakistan’s national grounds, it was the UAE that came to the rescue. Every cricket-loving fan knows it took almost ten years for Pakistan to regain its hosting rights. Similarly, in between that ten-year gap, UAE was considered the home ground of green shirts, where they played all their matches in all formats for over a decade. Currently, there are around eleven International grounds that UAE has established on various venues. So, let's highlight the most visited cricket grounds in the list below: 

1. Dubai International Cricket Stadium

If you are a cricket fan, then you must have witnessed the Semi-final and Finals of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2021, which was held at Dubai International Cricket Stadium. This 25-thousand-capacity ground was established fourteen years ago, and now it is one of the top three grounds in UAE. Others, including Zayed Cricket Stadium and Sharjah Cricket Stadium. As of 2023, Dubai International Cricket Stadium has successfully hosted several tournaments. Such as:

  • Indian Premier League, 2014, 20, and 21 
  • Pakistan Super League, 2016,17,18 and 19
  • Asia Cup 2018 and 22 
  • ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2021

City: Dubai

Establishment: 2009

Capacity: 25,000

Location: Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Rd - Dubai Sports City - Dubai - United Arab Emirates

2. Sharjah Cricket Stadium

This International cricket ground doesn’t need any introduction, as you just need to go back in time and remember the Sharjah Cup match between India and Pakistan in 1986. Yes, this was the miraculous cricket ground where Pakistani legend Cricketer Javed Miandad created history. Sharjah Cricket Stadium is one of the oldest grounds in UAE, built-in 1982. Just like UAE Became the home country of the Pakistan cricket team from 2009 to 2019, in the same way, this ground became the associated ground of the Afghanistan cricket team for more than a decade. The ground is famous for all cricket formats, and in 2018, the final of the Blind Cricket World Cup was played on this surface. 

City: Sharjah

Establishment: 1982

Capacity: 16,000

Location: Second Industrial St - Industrial Area - Industrial Area 5 - Sharjah - United Arab Emirates

3. Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium

Zayed Cricket Stadium in Abu Dhabi was established under the operational authority of the Emirates Cricket Board, which took almost 24 million in construction. Due to the higher cost invested in this stadium, Sheikh Zayed is the most expensively made stadium in UAE. After the inauguration of this ground, it was highlighted as a test venue, and Pakistan and South Africa were the first teams that played their test match series here back in 2010. This ground has also hosted several charitable and friendly sports matches as well. In 2019 the Thailand and Oman football teams played a friendly match here at Zayed Cricket Stadium.

City: Abu Dhabi

Establishment: 2004

Capacity: 20,000

Location: Near Khalifa City A - Abu Dhabi - United Arab Emirates

4. ICC Academy Ground

This ICC Academy Ground works under the supervision of the International Cricket Council since 2009, and it has been able to host matches of associated teams. The stadium has indoor and outdoor grounds that are used in local country-level tournaments, as the ICC association also manages the training camps of the associated teams here in this stadium. ICC Academy Ground has also hosted under-nineteen and women's cricket matches. 

City: Dubai

Establishment: 2009

Capacity: 15,000

Location: Dubai Sports City, Sports Village - Dubai - United Arab Emirates           

5. Tolerance Oval

Established five years ago, Tolerance Oval Cricket Ground recently hosted the qualifying rounds of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2021. Plus, it was under the consideration of an extra venue in the tournament. The first international match was played between Australia and the United Arab Emirates in 2018 and is used as the top venue for qualifying round matchups. The overall capacity of Tolerance Oval is around 14,000 to 15,000, and it is located in Khalifa city Abu Dhabi. 

City: Abu Dhabi 

Establishment: 2018

Capacity: 15,000

Location: Khalifa City - Abu Dhabi - United Arab Emirates

UAE’s cricket venues were always part of international tournaments. But after 2009, everything changed; those grounds were hosting one major event every year. In today's time, UAE supports those countries that are struggling to arrange a cricket match on native grounds. In the same way, there are multiple franchise tournaments that are also under contract with Dubai Sports City.