Rose Bowl to be redeveloped

The Rose Bowl © Getty Images

Hampshire’s Rose Bowl is set for a £35million redevelopment which the county hope will make it a flagship Test match venue in years to come.

The ground has yet to stage a Test match but Rose Bowl plc believe that will all change once the development work is complete in 2009.

The development will increase the temporary capacity of the ground to 23,600 - which will make it the second-largest cricket venue in the country - and an increase in the permanent capacity to 13,500.

A four-star resort hotel is to be built at the 150-acre site in West End and the existing golf course is to be extended from a nine-hole course to 18-hole championship-standard facility.

Access to and from The Rose Bowl has improved significantly this year with 75% of the sell-out crowd at the NatWest Series one-day international between England and Pakistan in September, exiting the ground in just 25 minutes.

The new developments will add two new entrances to the ground for both pedestrian and vehicular traffic, resulting in the ability to empty the ground completely in just 50 minutes or less.

Finally, the crucial area of pitch development will continue under the new plans. Umpire marks for the Rose Bowl's four-day pitches in 2006 have moved it from 18th in the table in 2005 to 9th - the biggest single improvement of any county, positioning it above two existing Test match grounds and substantially equivalent to four others.

Rod Bransgrove, Chairman of Rose Bowl plc, said: “Our vision is of a spectacular international sports and entertainment resort with Test match cricket at its heart.

“These plans take cricket at the Rose Bowl ‘beyond first class’ and will provide cricket fans with the exciting prospect of seeing the world’s best cricketers in action at an outstanding world-class international cricket ground.”

"Working with all our key local, regional and national stakeholders, we are looking forward to turning the vision into a hard and fast reality and elevating The Rose Bowl into the premier division of the country's cricket grounds."

Eastleigh Borough Council leader Keith House added:

"Eastleigh is proud to host one of England's very best cricket and entertainment venues in West End.

"The Rose Bowl has an ambition to be one of the world's greatest cricketing venues and Eastleigh Borough Council shares that ambition.

"The proposals launched today are an outline of a truly exciting package that can help boost more people taking part in cricket and watching some of the world's best cricket.

"We'll be working with The Rose Bowl as they refine their plans."

Subject to planning permission, the work is set to start in late 2007.