As the Wankhede Stadium returns to the World Cup fold with the game between South Africa and England, the famous venue is winning the hearts of several former cricketers as well.
The likes of Michael Vaughan and Kevin Pietersen have gone ga-ga over the pitch that has been aiding the batters generously and also offering some assistance to the bowlers.
The iconic stadium last hosted a World Cup game famously on April 2nd, 2011 when India played Sri Lanka in the summit clash of that edition and India emerged champions.
The Wankhede Stadium has a history of hosting classic World Cup encounters in 1987 and 1996, both occasions when India co-hosted the World Cup.
The 1987 World Cup semifinal is the match where Mike Gatting's England swept India out of the competition with his stellar knock of 56 that laid the foundation for England's total of 254.
In the 1996 World Cup encounter between India and Australia, the Wankhede will be remembered for Sachin Tendulkar's blazing knock of 90 where he took on the likes of Glenn McGrath and Shane Warne although India eventually lost that match.
That game was the first-ever flood-lit day/night match hosted by the Wankhede Stadium and there have been several day/nighters since then.
The most famous of them all has to be Mahendra Singh Dhoni's iconic six off Nuwan Kulasekhara that went sailing into the Wankhede stands to land India its second ODI World Cup title after the 1983 victory.
Talking about the batting-friendly conditions and the balanced nature of the pitch, Wankhede helped Sri Lanka post 274/6 in 50 overs.
India ofcourse chased it down with 10 balls to spare reaching 277/4 powered by Dhoni and Yuvraj Singh's late flourish.
It was match that perfectly encapsulated what sort of a venue Wankhede really is. Providing something for the batsmen if they dig in and the bowlers if they hold their line and lengths.
