Cricket Club of India

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Cricket Club of India (CCI) is located on Dinsha Wacha Road, near Churchgate in Mumbai, India. It is perhaps one of the oldest and most prestigious cricket clubs in India and in the world. It was conceived as India's Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) and is every bit as exclusive and luxurious as the MCC.

One has to go back to when Douglas Jardine's MCC was in India. On November 8 1933 , the Cricket Club of India was incorporated as a company limited by guarantee with its registered office in New Delhi. As the name suggests, the principal object of the company was to promote sports in general and cricket in particular thoughout the country. The promoters and some leading men who founded BCCI five years ago were the promoters of the Club.Originally, life members, who were later termed as founder members, paid Rs 100 and ordinary members paid Rs 10 for entrance and an annual subscription of Rs 15 .

The CCI also houses in the Brabourne Stadium, which the club owns. The CCI is an affiliated member of the BCCI like any other state association, but unlike any one of them, does not conduct cricket in the state. Mumbai Cricket Association and Maharashtra Cricket Association which conduct cricket in Mumbai and rest of Maharashtra respectively. The stadium has one of the best cricket pitches and grounds in the region. It also has tennis courts, a swimming pool, fitness centers, a billiards room, squash courts, badminton courts, table tennis tables, cafes, bars, a library and a reading room.

The stadium also serves as the headquarters of the BCCI, the governing body of Indian cricket.

[edit] Kingfisher Open 2006

In 2006, the CCI will stage the ATP tournament, previously held in Shanghai from 1995 to 2004 and Vietnam Open 2005, officially known as Kingfisher Mumbai Open 2006. Kingfisher Airlines are the official sponsors. The tournament is presented by the Governement of Maharashtra, India.

Top players like Tommy Robredo, Mario Ancic, Carlos Moya, Mahesh Bhupathi, Leander Paes, etc are expected to play.

The tournment will be played from 25th September 2006 to 2nd October 2006.