Rose Bowl (cricket ground)

Hampshire had played at their Northlands Road headquarters in Southampton since 1885, as well as using Dean Park in Bournemouth, the United Services Recreation Ground in Portsmouth and May's Bounty in Basingstoke as regular outground venues. Northlands Road was a cramped location, surrounded by residential buildings which meant expanding the ground was largely impossible. Hampshire also wanted to encourage international cricket to the county, which would not have been possible with Northlands Road. Talk of a move from Newlands Road had begun as early as 1987, with Mark Nicholas discussing the idea with then Hampshire vice-chairman Bill Hughes in a Leeds restaurant.[3] A site was eventually selected just outside Southampton in the village of West End, on a gently sloping open field nestled between the M27 motorway and Telegraph Woods.

The ground was designed by architect Sir Michael Hopkins, whose design of the centrepiece pavilion with its tented roof was reminiscent of the Mound Stand at Lord's, which Hopkins also designed.[4] Construction started on the ground in 1997, however, the budget for the ground's construction soon spiralled out of control, threatening the very existence of the club. Further funding was secured as construction continued until its first stage was completed in time for the 2001 season.[5] Its final cost was £20 million, with a large part of that cost being secured with Lottery and Sport England funding, while the club's financial future was secured by the incoming chairman, Rod Bransgrove.

The ground is built into the side of the gently sloping hill on which it is located, resulting in an amphitheatre bowl. The initial name for the ground was announced in 2000 as The Rose Bowl, in recognition of the club's rose and crown logo and the bowl-shaped nature of the ground.[6]

An aerial view of the Rose Bowl in 2004

Hampshire's first scheduled county match at the ground was a List A match in the 2001 Benson & Hedges Cup against Essex on 2 May, though the match was abandoned without a ball bowled due to rain, therefore the first completed match on the ground was a List A match in the same competition against Surrey on 4 May, which Hampshire lost.[7] First-class cricket was first played there days later on 9–11 May, when Hampshire played Worcestershire in the County Championship, which resulted in Hampshire's first victory there with a 124 run victory.[8] Hampshire were not the only tenant in the first year of the ground, with the Hampshire Cricket Board playing Ireland in September 2001 in the Cheltenham & Gloucester Trophy.[7]

In November 2001, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) awarded the Rose Bowl a Youth Test match between England Under-19s and India Under-19s.[9] The following month the ECB announced the Rose Bowl would be awarded One Day International status with effect from 2004.[10] The pavilion was completed in March 2002 at a cost of £2 million, and upon completion it was the only pavilion among the first-class counties to have jacuzzis in the players changing rooms.[11]

In 2003, the ground played host to only the second ever Twenty20 match played, when Hampshire hosted Sussex in the Twenty20 Cup.[12] The Rose Bowl hosted its first One Day International (ODI) on 10 July 2003, when South Africa played Zimbabwe in the 2003 NatWest Series,[13] with numerous publications calling the hosting of the match a resounding success for Hampshire.[14]

In 2004, the ground hosted another ODI between New Zealand and the West Indies in the 2004 NatWest Series, though the match was abandoned without a ball bowled. The ground later held five ODIs during that seasons Champions Trophy, which saw India post 290/4 against Kenya, the United States dismissed for 65 by Australia, and Mervyn Dillon take figures of 5/29 for the West Indies against Bangladesh: all three of these records remain to this day in terms of the highest and lowest innings scores in ODI cricket at the ground, as well as the best innings bowling figures. During the course of the tournament, England also played there for the first time, against Sri Lanka,[13] though The Rose Bowl was criticised for its organisation of the match, with spectators citing access to the ground, long queues and stringent searches at the gate among complaints.[15]

In 2005, England played their first ever Twenty20 International (T20I) against Australia as part of the Ashes series, with England winning the match by 100 runs.[16]

In 2006, England played another T20I against Sri Lanka, which England won, due in large to Marcus Trescothick's 72.[17] The Rose Bowl hosted three further ODIs prior to the grounds redevelopment, hosting Pakistan in 2006, India in 2007 and Australia in 2009.[13] The ground held Twenty20 Cup Finals Day in 2008, which saw Middlesex defeat Kent in front of a capacity crowd.[18] Prior to the redevelopment, major matches such as this match and international matches were catered for by erecting temporary seating to boost the grounds capacity from 6,500 to 15,000.

A view of the ground during England's 2006 T20 International against Sri Lanka

The early years at the ground were notable for immature wickets that favoured seam bowling, resulting in many low scoring encounters. The quality of these pitches drew much criticism. In the first season, seamer Alan Mullally took 8/90 against Warwickshire in the County Championship, which remains the best innings bowling figures at the ground. As the pitches settled down, higher scores became more frequent, though it was still more favourable to bowlers than batsmen. In 2005, Hampshire scored 714/5 against Nottinghamshire, in a match which also saw John Crawley record the first triple century at the ground. His unbeaten 311 helped Hampshire to reach that formidable total. These records remain to this day as the highest team and individual scores at The Ageas Bowl. Worcestershire posted the lowest first-class total at the ground in 2007, making 86.

The attraction of international cricket to Hampshire was one of the main motivators facilitating Hampshire's move from Northlands Road. While Hampshire had attracted ODI cricket, Test cricket still proved elusive in attracting. Hampshire had applied to the ECB for the Ageas Bowl to be given Test status, applying as early as 2006 for the right to host Test matches, however their application was rejected, with Glamorgan's SWALEC Stadium instead preferred to host a Test match during the 2009 Ashes series.[19] This rejection persuaded Hampshire chairman Bransgrove to invest £35 million in redeveloping the ground, which would include the construction of a new access road to alleviate the transport problems which have affected major matches,[20] the expansion of the ground's capacity and the construction of a hotel to make the Ageas Bowl more financially viable for Hampshire. By the time permission had been granted for the first phase of the redevelopment to commence, costs had risen to £45 million.[21]

View of the pavilion and the Shane Warne Stand during an ODI between England and the West Indies in June 2012.

The plans called for the construction of two matching stands either side of the pavilion to increase the permanent capacity to 15,000,[22] as well as a four-star, 175-room hotel overlooking the ground at the northern end. Access problems for spectators were to be eased by creating two ticket gates to access to ground, as well as creating an additional access road off Moorhill Road.[23][24]

The redevelopment plans led to the ECB awarding the Ageas Bowl Test status and a Test match between England and Sri Lanka in 2011, with the redevelopment scheduled to be completed before the Test match.[25] The redevelopment was beset with a number of problems. During the construction of the new stands, a construction worker was crushed to death in February 2009,[26] while prior to the Test match the new access road still had not been constructed. Meanwhile, legal action by local hoteliers led to the construction of the hotel at the Northern End being put on hold, with the hoteliers objecting to the possible impact on competition and to the use of public funds from Eastleigh Borough Council.[27]

As part of their preparations for the Test match, the Ageas Bowl was awarded the right to host finals day of the 2010 Friends Provident t20, during which Hampshire became the first county to win the final at their home ground, when they defeated Somerset in controversial circumstances.[28] Also in 2010, the Ageas Bowl was voted "Best International Ground" in an independent ECB survey of fans around the country and was also voted the "Most Improved Ground" by readers of All Out Cricket magazine.[29]

The first Test match was played on 16–20 June 2011. It was a heavily rain affected match that ended in a draw, but did see Ian Bell and Kumar Sangakkara score the first Test centuries at the ground, in addition to Chris Tremlett taking the first five wicket haul.

Hampshire found themselves £12 million in debt by the end of the 2011 season. With the county unable to maintain the upkeep of the ground from their own finances, the decision was taken to sell the lease from Queens College Oxford (the Landlord) to Eastleigh Borough Council and to sub-lease from the Council with buy-back options.[30] This transaction was conditional on a further injection of £6million from Rod Bransgrove and was completed in January 2012. The council also administered some £30million Prudential Funding from Central Government for the building of the hotel, which was given the go-ahead after the legal action by local hoteliers was quashed at the High Court.

Panorama of the Ageas Bowl in 2015 looking north from the pavilion

• Highest team total: 583/8d by England against Pakistan, 2020
• Lowest team total: 178 by India against England, 2014[48]
• Highest individual innings: 267 by Zak Crawley for England against Pakistan, 2020
• Best bowling in an innings: 6/42 by Jason Holder for West Indies against England, 2020
• Best bowling in a match: 9/137 by Shannon Gabriel for West Indies against England, 2020

• Highest team total: 373/3 (50 overs) by England against Pakistan, 2019[49]
• Lowest team total: 65 (24 overs) by USA against Australia, 2004[50]
• Highest individual innings: 189 not out by Martin Guptill for New Zealand against England, 2013[49]
• Best bowling in an innings: 5/29 by Mervyn Dillon for West Indies against Bangladesh, 2004[51] and 5/29 by Shakib Al Hasan for Bangladesh against Afghanistan, 2019

• Highest team total: 248/6 (20 overs) by Australia against England, 2013[52]
• Lowest team total: 79 (14.3 overs) by Australia against England, 2005[53]
• Highest individual innings: 156 by Aaron Finch for Australia against England, 2013[17]
• Best bowling in an innings: 4/22 by Paul Collingwood for England against Australia, 2005[54]

• Highest team total: 714/5d by Hampshire against Nottinghamshire, 2005[55]
• Lowest team total: 86 by Worcestershire against Hampshire, 2007[56]
• Highest individual innings: 311* by John Crawley for Hampshire against Nottinghamshire, 2005[57]
• Best bowling in an innings: 8/90 by Alan Mullally for Hampshire against Warwickshire, 2001[58]
• Best bowling in a match: 11/59 by Kyle Hogg for Lancashire against Hampshire, 2011[59]

• Highest team total: 350/5 (50 overs) by Gloucestershire against Hampshire, 2008[60]
• Lowest team total: 101 (36.4 overs) by Sussex against Hampshire, 2003[61]
• Highest individual innings: 167* by Sean Ervine for Hampshire against Ireland, 2009[62]
• Best bowling in an innings: 6/27 by Stuart Clark for Hampshire against Surrey, 2007[63]

• Highest team total: 225/2 (20 overs) by Hampshire against Middlesex, 2006[64]
• Lowest team total: 72 (14 overs) by Kent against Hampshire, 2011[65]
• Highest individual innings: 124 not out by Michael Lumb for Hampshire against Essex, 2009[66]
• Best bowling in an innings: 5/19 by Danny Briggs for Hampshire against Durham, 2011[67]

• 
  View from the Pavilion End, looking toward the Northern End of the ground.
• 
  Main pavilion at the Rose Bowl. The England team are taking to the field in a friendly match against Hampshire.
• 
  Another view of the pavilion.
• 
  Nursery Ground.

• 
  The pavilion, with seating section removed.
• 
  The East Stand. Top right of the stand is the Shaun Udal suite.
• 
  The new West Stand. Top left of the stand is the Shane Warne suite.
• 
  The new East Stand under floodlights during an England v Australia ODI in 2010.
• 
  Similar view of the East Stand, in the foreground Eoin Morgan has just brought up his century with the winning runs.
• 
  The Hilton Hotel under construction in May 2013.