The Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA) yesterday decided to rechristen the Feroz Shah Kotla Stadium as Arun Jaitley Stadium in the memory of its former President who passed away on Aug.24.

The renaming will take place on Sept.12 at a function where a stand at the Stadium will be named after India captain Virat Kohli as announced earlier.

Speaking on this initiative, DDCA President Rajat Sharma said: “It was Arun Jaitley’s support and encouragement that players like Virat Kohli, Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Ashish Nehra, Rishabh Pant and many others could make India proud.”

Jaitley, during his tenure at DDCA, is credited with renovating the Stadium into a modern facility, increasing its capacity to accommodate more fans besides constructing world class dressing rooms. The function, to be held at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, will be graced by the presence of Home Minister Amit Shah and Sports Minister Kiren Rijiju.

The Feroz Shah Kotla Stadium is the second-oldest Cricket Stadium in India after Kolkata’s Eden Gardens and was established in 1883. The Stadium’s capacity is currently at over 40,000. It has hosted host to 34 Test matches, 25 ODIs and 5 T20Is. Besides that, it also hosts matches for the Delhi cricket team as well as the Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise Delhi Capitals.