The Headingley Cricket Stadium is a part of the Emerald Headingley Sports Complex located in Leeds, England. It is connected to the Headingley Carnegie Rugby Stadium to the extent of them having not only a common stand but also common housing facilities.
It has been witnessing and hosting test cricket ever since 1899 and has a capacity of 17,500 spectators.
It serves as the home to the Yorkshire County Cricket Club and Yorkshire Vikings Twenty20 cricket team.
History
The Headingley Cricket Stadium opened in 1891 and has been used for test matches since 1899 between England and Australia.
It was the first of the 73 test matches that have been hosted here. Headingley has hosted one neutral Test in 2010, when Pakistan defeated Australia.
Donald Bradman has scored two triple centuries at Headingley - 334 and 304. Hedley Verity, the English spinner took 10 wickets for 10 runs in 1932 for Yorkshire v Nottinghamshire, which are still the best bowling figures ever in first-class cricket.
This was the second time he had a ten-wicket haul at Headingley, a feat he had recorded earlier against Warwickshire in 1931.
Major Matches
In Tests, the highest team score posted here is 653/4 (dec) by Australia against England on 22 July 1993.
In addition to this the stadium has witnessed several awe-inspiring moments in the Ashes, including the 1981 Ashes game where the hosts, England secured a victory by 18 runs after they were forced to follow on. This happened due to great spells by Ian Botham (149 not out) and Bob Willis (43-8).
Controversies
In the third test match of the 1975 Ashes series, early on Tuesday 19 August head groundsman George Cawthray discovered that campaigners calling for the release from prison of George Davis who had been arrested wrongfully for the London Electrical Board Robbery in 1974, had dug holes in the pitch and poured oil over one end of the wicket.
This led to the match being abandoned and declared a draw. Australia won the first match of the Ashes and this draw denied England the chance to take the tournament back as Australia emerged as victors in the four-match series.
Recent Matches
England recently played South Africa in a one day international at Headingley, on the 24th of May, 2017. England scored a massive 339 total, batting first. This is also the highest score in ODIs at Headingley.
On 17 August 2017, Yorkshire CCC posted the highest ever T20 score in English domestic cricket of 260–4, with Adam Lyth scoring the highest individual score in English domestic cricket.
Shai Hope scored two centuries in the test match between England and West Indies on the 29th of the same month.
