The Ageas Bowl

When Hampshire County Cricket Club looked into renovating Southampton’s old County Ground in 1987, it was agreed that the demands placed upon the pavilion and grounds had outgrown the facilities. Thirteen years and £24m later, The Rose Bowl opened.

The Rose Bowl as it was formally known has been home to many international cricketers since the move from the old County Ground in 2001. The legendary Shane Warne played with Hampshire from 2000-2007. Club captain for four years, Warne was joined by fellow Australian internationals Simon Katich, Shane Watson and Stuart Clark.

Hampshire also has a strong history of developing England players: the likes of Robin Smith, Shaun Udal, Chris Tremlett and Dimitri Mascarenhas have all represented their country. After joining Hampshire in 2004, Kevin Pietersen broke into the England set up, leading to a controversial period as captain of the national side.

In 2006 The Rose Bowl hosted the Twenty20 international against Sri Lanka and, following a successful planning application, was awarded Test venue status by the England and Wales Cricket Board. It will host its first Test match, England vs Sri Lanka, in 2011 to a crowd of up to 25,000 people.

In 2012 Hampshire cricket signed a ground naming rights sponsorship deal which saw The Rose Bowl renamed to The Ageas Bowl. The club chairman, Rod Bransgrove agreed a six-year deal with Eastleigh-based company Ageas who are part of an insurance group with around 20 million customers and 13,000 employees worldwide.

For more information, including forthcoming music and sporting events, please visit  www.ageasbowl.com