Old Trafford is a

cricket ground Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by st ...

Old Trafford Old Trafford () is a football stadium in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, England, and the home of Manchester United. With a capacity of 74,310 it is the largest club football stadium (and second-largest football stadium overall after We ...

, Greater Manchester, England. It opened in 1857 as the home of Manchester Cricket Club and has been the home of

Lancashire County Cricket Club Lancashire County Cricket Club represents the historic county of Lancashire in English cricket. The club has held first-class status since it was founded in 1864. Lancashire's home is Old Trafford Cricket Ground, although the team also play ...

since 1864. From 2013 onwards it has been known as Emirates Old Trafford due to a sponsorship deal with the Emirates airline. Old Trafford is England's second oldest

Test Test(s), testing, or TEST may refer to: * Test (assessment), an educational assessment intended to measure the respondents' knowledge or other abilities Arts and entertainment * ''Test'' (2013 film), an American film * ''Test'' (2014 film), ...

venue after

The Oval The Oval, currently known for sponsorship reasons as the Kia Oval, is an international cricket ground in Kennington, located in the borough of Lambeth, in south London. The Oval has been the home ground of Surrey County Cricket Club since ...

and hosted the first Ashes Test in England in 1884. The venue has hosted the Cricket World Cup five times (

1975 It was also declared the ''International Women's Year'' by the United Nations and the European Architectural Heritage Year by the Council of Europe. Events January * January 1 - Watergate scandal (United States): John N. Mitchell, H. R. ...

, 1979, 1983,

1999 File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school s ...

and

2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...

). Old Trafford holds the record for both most World Cup matches hosted (17) and most semi-finals hosted (5). In 1956, the first

10-wicket haul In cricket, a ten-wicket haul occurs when a bowler takes ten wickets in either a single innings or across both innings of a two-innings match. The phrase ten wickets in a match is also used. Taking ten wickets in a match at Lord's earns the bow ...

in a single innings was achieved by England bowler Jim Laker who achieved bowling figures of 19 wickets for 90 runs—a bowling record which is unmatched in

and first-class cricket. In 1990, a 17 year old

Sachin Tendulkar Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar (; ; born 24 April 1973) is an Indian former international cricketer who captained the Indian national team. He is regarded as one of the greatest batsmen in the history of cricket. He is the all time highest run-sco ...

scored 119 not out against England, which was the first of his 100 international centuries. In the 1993 Ashes Test at Old Trafford, leg-spinner

Shane Warne Shane Keith Warne (13 September 1969 – 4 March 2022) was an Australian international cricketer, whose career ran from 1991 to 2007. Warne played as a right-arm leg spin bowler and a right-handed batsman for Victoria, Hampshire and Austral ...

bowled Mike Gatting with the " Ball of the Century". In 2020 the ground was used as one of two biosecure venues, alongside the Ageas Bowl, for the tours involving

West Indies The West Indies is a subregion of North America, surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea that includes 13 independent island countries and 18 dependencies and other territories in three major archipelagos: the Great ...

and

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

which were regulated due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identified ...

. After Old Trafford lost test status in 2009, extensive redevelopment of the ground to increase capacity and modernise facilities saw the restoration of the pavilion and creation of The Point, a £12 million stand overlooking the pitch.

History

Early history

The site was first used as a cricket ground in 1857, when the Manchester Cricket Club moved onto the meadows of the de Trafford estate. Despite the construction of a large pavilion (for the amateurs—the professionals used a shed at the opposite end of the ground), Old Trafford's first years were rocky: accessible only along a footpath from

the railway station ''The Railway Station'' is an 1862 genre painting by the British artist William Powell Frith. It depicts a scene at the busy Paddington Station railway terminus of the Great Western in London. Frith had developed a reputation for producing cro ...

, the ground was situated out in the country, and games only attracted small crowds. It was not until the Roses match of 1875 that significant numbers attended a game. When W. G. Grace brought

Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( abbreviated Glos) is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn and the entire Forest of Dean. The county town is the city of Gl ...

in 1878, Old Trafford saw 28,000 spectators over three days, and this provoked improvements to access and facilities. In 1884, Old Trafford became the second English ground, after

, to stage Test cricket: with the first day being lost to rain,

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

drew with Australia. Expansion of the ground followed over the next decade, with the decision being taken to construct a new pavilion in 1894. The ground was purchased outright from the de Traffords in 1898, for £24,372, as crowds increased, with over 50,000 spectators attending the 1899 Test match. In 1902, the Australian Victor Trumper hit a hundred before lunch on the first day; Australia went on to win the Test by 3 runs—the third-closest Test result in history. Crowds fell through the early 20th century, and the ground was closed during the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fig ...

; however, in the conflict's aftermath, crowd numbers reached new heights. Investment followed throughout the inter-war period, and during this time, Lancashire experienced their most successful run to date, gaining four championship titles in five years. During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, Old Trafford was used as a transit camp for troops returning from

Dunkirk Dunkirk (french: Dunkerque ; vls, label= French Flemish, Duunkerke; nl, Duinkerke(n) ; , ;) is a commune in the department of Nord in northern France.Victory Test' between England and Australia of August 1945 proved to be extremely popular, with 76,463 seeing it over three days.

Post-Second World War

Differences of opinion between the club's committee and players led to a bad run of form in the 1950s and early 1960s; this consequently saw gate money drop, and a lack of investment. After 1964, however, the situation was reversed, and 1969 saw the first Indoor Cricket Centre opened. In 1956 Jim Laker became the first person to take all 10 wickets in a Test match

innings An innings is one of the divisions of a cricket match during which one team takes its turn to bat. Innings also means the period in which an individual player bats (acts as either striker or nonstriker). Innings, in cricket, and rounders, is ...

, achieving figures of 10 for 53 in the fourth Test against Australia (the only other bowlers to take all 10 wickets in an innings are Anil Kumble of

India India, officially the Republic of India ( Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the ...

in 1999 and

Ajaz Patel Ajaz Yunus Patel (born 21 October 1988) is a New Zealand cricketer who plays for Central Districts in domestic cricket. Patel is a slow left-arm orthodox spin bowler. He made his international debut for the New Zealand cricket team in October 2 ...

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 List of islands of New Zealand, smaller islands. It is the ...

in 2021). Having also taken 9 for 37 in the first innings, Laker ended the match with record figures of 19 for 90, which remain unmatched to this day. On 1 May 1963 the first ever one day cricket match took place at Old Trafford, as the Gillette Cup was launched. Lancashire beat Leicestershire in a preliminary knock-out game, as 16th and 17th finishers in the Championship the previous year, to decide who would fill the 16th spot in the One Day competition. Following Lancashire's reign as One Day champions in the 1970s, a programme of renovation and replacement was initiated in 1981. This changed the face of the ground to the extent that, now, only the Pavilion "is recognisable to a visitor who last watched or played a game in, say, the early 1980s".Mortimer, ''Old Trafford'', xxi. In 1981

Ian Botham Ian Terence Botham, Baron Botham, (born 24 November 1955) is an English cricket commentator, member of the House of Lords, a former cricketer who has been chairman of Durham County Cricket Club since 2017 and charity fundraiser. Hailed as on ...

hit 118, including six sixes (the second greatest number in an Ashes innings), which he has called "one of the three innings I would like to tell my grandchildren about". England went on to win the Ashes after being lampooned in the national media for such poor performances. In 1990,

scored his first Test hundred at the age of 17—becoming the second-youngest centurion—to help India draw. In 1993,

bowled the " Ball of the Century" to Mike Gatting at the ground. In the same game, Graham Gooch was out handling the ball for 133—only the sixth out of nine times this has ever happened. In 1995, Dominic Cork took a

hat-trick A hat-trick or hat trick is the achievement of a generally positive feat three times in a match, or another achievement based on the number three. Origin The term first appeared in 1858 in cricket, to describe H. H. Stephenson taking three wi ...

for England against the West Indies. In 2000, both Mike Atherton and Alec Stewart played their hundredth Tests, against the West Indies. In the Third Test of the

2005 Ashes series The 2005 Ashes series was that year's edition of the long-standing cricket rivalry between England and Australia. Starting on 21 July 2005, England and Australia played five Tests, with the Ashes held by Australia as the most recent victors. The ...

the match ended in a nailbiting draw, with 10,000 fans shut out of the ground on the final day as tickets were sold out. England went on to win the series regaining the Ashes for the first time since 1986/87. In 2020 the ground was used as one of two biosecure venues, alongside the Ageas Bowl, for the tours involving

and

which were regulated due to the

The Ground

The cricket ground is near the

football stadium (a five-minute walk away down Warwick Road and Sir Matt Busby Way), in the borough of

Trafford Trafford is a metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England, with an estimated population of 235,493 in 2017. It covers Retrieved on 13 December 2007. and includes the area of Old Trafford and the towns of Altrincham, Stretford, ...

Greater Manchester Greater Manchester is a metropolitan county and combined authority area in North West England, with a population of 2.8 million; comprising ten metropolitan boroughs: Manchester, Salford, Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Stockport, Tamesid ...

, approximately two miles south west of Manchester city centre. Its capacity is 22,000 for Test matches, for which temporary stands are erected, and 15,000 for other matches. Since 1884, it has hosted 74 Tests, the third-highest number in England, behind Lord's and

The Ends

The northern End is the

James Anderson James Anderson may refer to: Arts * James Anderson (American actor) (1921–1969), American actor *James Anderson (author) (1936–2007), British mystery writer * James Anderson (English actor) (born 1980), British actor * James Anderson (filmmake ...

End, formerly the Pavilion End. ("The Point" is the distinctive, red conference center immediately west of The Pavilion.) The southern End is the

Brian Statham John Brian Statham, (17 June 1930 – 10 June 2000) was an English professional cricketer from Gorton, in Manchester, who played for Lancashire County Cricket Club from 1950 to 1968 and for England from 1951 to 1965.England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

player. The red building at this Statham (south) End is the Media & Players Center. A section of Warwick Road to the east is also called Brian Statham Way. Immediately abutting the ground to the south-east is the Old Trafford tram stop. Old Trafford has a reputation for unpredictable weather. Old Trafford is the only ground in England where a Test match has been abandoned without a ball being bowled—and this has happened here twice in 1890 and 1938, though before five-day test matches were introduced. Before Cardiff hosted its first Test match in July 2009, Old Trafford was reputedly the wettest Test ground in the country; Manchester is situated to the west of the

Pennines The Pennines (), also known as the Pennine Chain or Pennine Hills, are a range of uplands running between three regions of Northern England: North West England on the west, North East England and Yorkshire and the Humber on the east. Commonly ...

and faces prevailing winds and weather fronts from the Atlantic Ocean. These prevailing conditions have encouraged Lancashire to keep the ground as well-drained as possible, most recently through the acquisition of a hover cover in 2007, and the installation of new drains towards the end of the 2008 season. In the second Test of 1938 in a desperate effort to ensure play after heavy rain the groundstaff moved the turf from the practice pitch to the square—a unique attempt.Mortimer, ''Old Trafford'', centre photos. In 2010–11 the wickets were relaid, changing their extremely unusual east–west axis to a more conventional north–south layout. The Brian Statham End (previously the Warwick Road End) to the east, and Stretford End to the west, were replaced by the Pavilion End to the north, and the Brian Statham End to the south.

The Pavilion

The three-tiered Victorian members' pavilion was built in 1895 for £10,000. Hit by a bomb in 1940—which destroyed the members' dining room and groundsman's quarters—most of the pavilion was rebuilt. One million pounds was spent on a new roof after it began to leak in 2003. The Pavilion's position was noteworthy in that, until 2010, it sat parallel to the wickets, rather than behind them, presenting the members with one of the worst viewing angles possible. It contains batting and bowling Honour Boards, unveiled during the 2004 Test match. The pavilion underwent redevelopment at the start of 2012 and was reopened for the YB40 game against

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to th ...

. When the bowler is operating from the southern Brian Statham End, television viewers will be looking at the Pavilion with its two clock towers directly behind the keeper.

The Point

The Point, Old Trafford's distinctive £12 million conference centre, and at 1,000 seats one of the largest multi-purpose conference facilities in

North West England North West England is one of nine official regions of England and consists of the ceremonial counties of England, administrative counties of Cheshire, Cumbria, Greater Manchester, Lancashire and Merseyside. The North West had a population of ...

, opened in 2010. It is positioned immediately west of the Pavilion, and hence, is northwest of the cricket pitch.

Media and Players Centre

Old Trafford was unusual in that there were two media stands at opposite ends of the ground prior to the new Media Centre which opened in September 2012. Television and radio commentators previously operated in temporary television studios and commentary boxes at the Stretford End which were perched on hospitality boxes. The Media and Players Centre is at the Brian Statham End (southern end). When the bowler is operating from the northern James Anderson End, television viewers will be looking at the Media and Players Center directly behind the keeper.

Cricket practice school

The idea of an indoor school was born in 1951, when nets were strung up in the Members' Dining Room in the pavilion. A permanent facility was built in 1969, and replaced in 1997. The current building stands to the north-west of the pitch; it contains five 60-metre lanes on various surfaces, several conference rooms, and a large shop.

The hotel

To the north-east of the ground, immediately adjacent to the Pavilion is a 150-bed Hilton Garden hotel which opened in late 2017. Similar in architecture to ''The Point'' on the other side of the Pavilion, half the rooms have a balcony with a full view of the pitch. Previously, this was occupied by the ''Old Trafford Lodge'' which opened in 1999. The hotel had 68 rooms, 36 having unobstructed views of the playing surface. It was demolished in 2016 and the new hotel opened in late 2017.

Redevelopment 2003–2017

Hilton Garden Inn Emirates Old Trafford-geograph-5741295-by-John-Sutton

Following rejection of plans, in 2003, to sell Old Trafford, and move the club to a new purpose-built stadium in East Manchester, the focus was switched to upgrading the current ground. Lancashire CCC, with a coalition of businesses, are in the process of making the cricket ground the centre of an anticipated development, in a mixed-use scheme involving business, residential, retail, hotel and leisure facilities. The first phase of redevelopment saw the laying of new drains in Autumn 2008. In 2009, the Stretford end of the ground was closed to facilitate destruction of the County Suite, Tyldesley Suite, 'K' and 'L' Stands and the scoreboard; The Point, overshadowing new seating to the west of the pavilion, opened in June 2010. During the 2010/11 winter the wickets were turned from their previous east–west axis to a more typical north–south alignment, which prevents the low evening sun from interfering with matches, and increased the number of available wickets by five, to sixteen. Many of Lancashire's home games for the 2011 season were transferred to out grounds while the new wickets 'bedded in'. The main planning process began in September 2008, but faced stiff legal opposition. Since

Tesco Tesco plc () is a British Multinational corporation, multinational groceries and general merchandise retailer headquartered in Welwyn Garden City, England. In 2011 it was the third-largest retailer in the world measured by gross revenues an ...

pledged £21 million to the redevelopment, the stadium's planning application included a request for a new supermarket nearby. Trafford Council gave this joint proposal permission in March 2010—a decision which was initially called in by the Communities Secretary for

Judicial Review Judicial review is a process under which executive, legislative and administrative actions are subject to review by the judiciary. A court with authority for judicial review may invalidate laws, acts and governmental actions that are incom ...

, before the go-ahead was given in September 2010. Derwent Holdings, a property development company denied permission to build a supermarket at the nearby White City retail park, then called for a Judicial Review. Although this was turned down by the High Court in March 2011, the case went to the Court of Appeal. Lancashire took the risky decision to begin work ahead of the matter being resolved, in order to qualify for grants from the North West Development Agency before it was wound up. However, the Court of Appeal ruled in Lancashire's favour in July 2011, and denied leave to further appeal. Work therefore began on this main phase in summer 2011, beginning with the installation of permanent floodlights and a new video screen. A new 'Players and Media' facility, mimicking to some degree the design of The Point, has been built on the site of the demolished Washbrook-Statham stand, with a two-tiered cantilever stand being erected on either side. The Pavilion has been renovated to have its sloped roof replaced with two modern glass storeys, finished in April 2013. The media facilities and corporate boxes on the western side of the ground have been demolished, leaving an empty space, which will be used for temporary seating or a stage when required. The Old Trafford Lodge opened in 1999; however, it has been since demolished and replaced by the Hilton Garden Inn Emirates Old Trafford. It is a

Hilton Garden Inn Hilton Garden Inn is an American chain of mid-priced, limited or focused service hotels owned by Hilton Worldwide. As of December 31, 2019, it has 862 properties with 126,086 rooms in 49 countries and territories, including 81 that are managed ...

150-bedroom hotel for

Hilton Worldwide Hilton Worldwide (legally Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc.) is an American multinational hospitality company that manages and franchises a broad portfolio of hotels and resorts. Founded by Conrad Hilton in May 1919, the corporation is now led b ...

. It completed in July 2017.

Uses

Cricket

The ground is used heavily throughout the summer as the base of

, with other home games being played at Stanley Park,

Blackpool Blackpool is a seaside resort in Lancashire, England. Located on the northwest coast of England, it is the main settlement within the borough also called Blackpool. The town is by the Irish Sea, between the Ribble and Wyre rivers, and ...

Birkdale Birkdale is an area of Southport, within the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton, Merseyside, though historically in Lancashire, in the north-west of England. The area is located on the Irish Sea coast, approximately a mile away from the centre of S ...

Southport Southport is a seaside town in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton in Merseyside, England. At the 2001 census, it had a population of 90,336, making it the eleventh most populous settlement in North West England. Southport lies on the Iris ...

and at

Aigburth Aigburth () is a suburb of Liverpool, England. Located to the south of the city, it is bordered by Dingle, Garston, Mossley Hill, and Toxteth. Etymology The name Aigburth comes from Old Norse ''eik'' and ''berg'', meaning ''oak-tree hill ...

Liverpool Liverpool is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the List of English districts by population, 10th largest English district by population and its E ...

. Until 2008, Old Trafford commonly hosted a Test match each year; none were hosted in 2009, 2011 or 2012 due to sub-standard facilities, although following redevelopment, Old Trafford hosted an Ashes Test in 2013, and further Tests in 2014 and 2016.

One Day International A One Day International (ODI) is a form of limited overs cricket, played between two teams with international status, in which each team faces a fixed number of overs, currently 50, with the game lasting up to 9 hours. The Cricket World Cup ...

s and/or International Twenty20s continue to be hosted every year. In Tests, the highest team score posted here is 656/8 dec by Australia against

on 23 July 1964. The leading run scorers here are Denis Compton (818 runs), Mike Atherton (729 runs) and Alec Stewart (704 runs). The leading wicket takers are

Alec Bedser Sir Alec Victor Bedser (4 July 1918 – 4 April 2010) was a professional English cricketer, primarily a medium-fast bowler. He is widely regarded as one of the best English cricketers of the 20th century. Bedser played first-class cricket fo ...

(51 wickets), James Anderson (28 wickets) and Jim Laker (27 wickets). In ODIs, the highest team score posted here is 397/6 by England against

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bord ...

on 18 June 2019. The leading run scorers here are Graham Gooch (405 runs), Eoin Morgan (368 runs), and Allan Lamb (341 runs). The leading wicket takers are Bob Willis (15 wickets),

(14 wickets) and Darren Gough (13 wickets).

Musical venue

The ground is occasionally used as a venue for large-scale concerts, with a maximum capacity of 50,000. Although the old stage location, in front of the Indoor Cricket School, has been built on buildings on the western side of the ground, which were cleared in 2013 to allow space for a larger stage. The concert capacity increased to 65,000 after redevelopment.

Other

The Old Trafford Lodge, The Point, and other corporate facilities are open all year round, as are the ground's car parks, situated to the north and west of the ground.

Transport

The ground is served by the adjacent Old Trafford tram stop on the

Manchester Metrolink Manchester Metrolink (branded locally simply as Metrolink) is a tram/ light rail system in Greater Manchester, England. The network has 99 stops along of standard-gauge route, making it the most extensive light rail system in the United Ki ...

Altrincham Line The Altrincham Line is a tram line of the Manchester Metrolink running from Manchester to Altrincham in Greater Manchester. Originally a railway line, it was, along with the Bury Line, converted into a tramway during 1991–92, as part of th ...

Notes

References

* *

External links

Old Trafford Cricket Ground on Cricinfo

Lancashire County Cricket Club
{{Authority control Buildings and structures in Trafford Sports venues in Greater Manchester Cricket grounds in Greater Manchester Test cricket grounds in England Stretford Music venues in Greater Manchester Sports venues completed in 1857 1857 establishments in England 1999 Cricket World Cup stadiums 1975 Cricket World Cup stadiums 1979 Cricket World Cup stadiums 1983 Cricket World Cup stadiums 2019 Cricket World Cup stadiums