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{{Short description|Cricket ground}}
{{About|the cricket ground|Middlesbrough FC's stadium|Riverside Stadium}}
{{Use British English|date=August 2015}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2020}}
{{Infobox cricket ground
| ground_name = Riverside Ground
| nickname = Chester-le-Street
| image = Durham_Riverside_Aerial.jpg
| country = England
| location = [[Chester-le-Street]], [[County Durham]]
| coordinates = {{coord|54|50|59|N|1|33|39|W|type:landmark_region:GB-DUR|display=it}}
| establishment = 1995
| seating_capacity = 5000 ''(domestic)''<br>17,000 ''(internationals)''<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/extra/vjVnELf6Ih/shapes_cricket_stadiums |title=The many shapes of England's cricket stadiums |work=BBC Sport |access-date=2 July 2019}}</ref>
| end1 = {{pad|2em}} Lumley End {{pad|2em}} [[File:RiversideCricketGroundPitchDimensions.svg|200px]]
| end2 = Finchale End
| international = true
| firsttestdate = 5–7 June
| firsttestyear = 2003
| firsttesthome = England
| firsttestaway = Zimbabwe
| lasttestdate = 27–30 May
| lasttestyear = 2016
| lasttesthome = England
| lasttestaway = Sri Lanka
| firstodidate = 20 May
| firstodiyear = 1999
| firstodihome = Pakistan
| firstodiaway = Scotland
| lastodidate = 19 July
| lastodiyear = 2022
| lastodihome = England
| lastodiaway = South Africa
| firstt20idate = 8 September
| firstt20iyear = 2012
| firstt20ihome = England
| firstt20iaway = South Africa
| lastt20idate = 30 August
| lastt20iyear = 2023
| lastt20ihome = England
| lastt20iaway = New Zealand

| firstwodidate = 18 June
| firstwodiyear = 1996
| firstwodihome = England
| firstwodiaway = New Zealand
| lastwodidate = 20 July
| lastwodiyear = 2002
| lastwodihome = England
| lastwodiaway = New Zealand
| firstwt20idate = 8 September
| firstwt20iyear = 2012
| firstwt20ihome = England
| firstwt20iaway = West Indies
| lastwt20idate = 10 September
| lastwt20iyear = 2022
| lastwt20ihome = England
| lastwt20iaway = India
| year1 = 1995 – present
| club1 = [[Durham County Cricket Club|Durham]]
| date = 30 August
| year = 2023
| source = http://www.espncricinfo.com/england/content/ground/56901.html Cricinfo
}}
The '''Riverside Ground''', known for [[Naming rights#Stadium naming|sponsorship reasons]] as the '''Seat Unique Riverside''', is a [[cricket]] venue in [[Chester-le-Street]], [[County Durham]], England. It is home to [[Durham County Cricket Club]], and has also hosted several international matches.

== History ==
[[File:Durham County playing at Chester-le-Street - geograph.org.uk - 123789.jpg|thumb|left|View to the north-east of the ground towards [[Lumley Castle]]. Additional seating on this side of the ground is now permanently erected, where previously for international matches, capacity was increased with temporary seating.]]
[[Durham County Cricket Club|Durham's]] acceptance into [[first-class cricket]] in 1991 was made conditional on the building of a new Test match-standard cricket ground.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.espncricinfo.com/county-cricket-2016/content/story/1060344.html|title=Brutal Durham punishment reflects poorly on ECB|author=George Dobell|publisher=ESPN Cricinfo|date=2016-10-03|access-date=2016-10-04}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/sport/cricket/durham-county-cricket-club-crisis-11979869|title=Durham County Cricket Club crisis: A beginner's guide to what went wrong and what happens now|author=Stuart Rayner|publisher=The Chronicle|date=2016-10-04|access-date=2016-10-04}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.alloutcricket.com/blogs/durham-nightwatchman|title=How Durham Became A First-Class County|author=Tim Wigmore|publisher=The Nightwatchman|date=2016-06-30|access-date=2016-10-04}}</ref> Work began on the new ground at the Riverside in a location overlooked by [[Lumley Castle]] in 1990, with development continuing in phases. Work on the outfield and playing surface began in 1993. In its first three seasons in the County Championship, the Club played in a variety of locations around the county, but the Riverside ground was pronounced ready for cricket in time for the 1995 season, even though many of the buildings were still temporary or unfinished. The ground hosted its first game, Durham ''vs.'' [[Warwickshire County Cricket Club|Warwickshire]], on 18 May 1995.<ref name="BBCAshes">{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/cricket/23587372|title=Will staging an Ashes Test help Durham join cricket's elite?|work=BBC Sport|date=8 August 2013|access-date=18 August 2013}}</ref>

Other facilities at the ground continued being built over subsequent years, and the club's Don Robson Pavilion was opened by [[Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom|Queen Elizabeth II]] in 1996. The full ground capacity, including permanent and temporary seating, is 17,000.<ref name="Cricinfo">{{cite news|url=http://www.espncricinfo.com/england/content/ground/56901.html|title=Riverside Ground|work=Cricinfo|access-date=16 August 2013}}</ref>

[[File:Riverside ground, Chester-le-Street.jpg|thumb|left|One of the entrances to the Don Robson Pavilion.]]

In September 2008 plans were announced concerning further developments to the ground.<ref>[http://content.cricinfo.com/england/content/story/368449.html Durham reveal ground plans], Cricinfo, Retrieved 3 May 2009</ref> These included installing permanent floodlights, and extending the County Durham stand so that permanent seating surrounds the entire ground, raising the ground capacity to around 20,000. A new entrance building was also planned to house the box office and club shop, as well as offices for club officials, a new perimeter road and a hotel. These developments were seen as a necessity, as the [[England and Wales Cricket Board]] (ECB) have specified that they must take place in order for the ground to secure its status as a venue for the 2019 Cricket World Cup.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/north-east-news/durham-ccc-submit-plans-12m-8856245|title=Durham CCC submit plans for £1.2m floodlight scheme in a bid to secure World Cup Cricket|date=18 March 2015}}</ref>

In April 2015, planning permission was granted to erect six permanent 55-metre floodlights around the ground.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.skysports.com/cricket/news/12149/9829935/durham-given-green-light-for-floodlights-at-emirates-durham-icg|title = Durham given green light for floodlights at Emirates Durham ICG}}</ref> Within weeks, the lights were in action as [[Durham Jets]] hosted the [[Yorkshire Vikings]] in a [[T20 Blast]] match.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/north-east-news/controversial-cricket-lights-durham-county-9341300|title=Controversial cricket lights at Durham County Cricket Club set to be used in first game|date=27 May 2015}}</ref>

On 16 September 2017, during the Riverside Ground's hosting of England's Twenty20 International match against the [[West Indies cricket team|West Indies]], a stand in the North-East Terrace partially collapsed. Three spectators were injured, and part of the stand was evacuated.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/cricket/41297080|title=England v West Indies: Three spectators injured as part of stand collapses|work=[[BBC Sport]]|date=2017-09-16|access-date=2017-10-01}}</ref>

Irish pop vocal band [[Westlife]] were due to perform at the stadium on 18 July 2020 for their "[[Stadiums in the Summer Tour]]" but the concert was cancelled due to the [[COVID-19 pandemic]].

==International matches==
The development of the Riverside into a significant cricketing venue was underscored in 1999, when it hosted two [[1999 ICC Cricket World Cup|World Cup]] matches involving [[Pakistan national cricket team|Pakistan]], [[Scotland national cricket team|Scotland]], [[Australia national cricket team|Australia]] and [[Bangladesh national cricket team|Bangladesh]], and then in 2000 when it staged two [[One-Day International]] matches in a [[NatWest Series|triangular series]] between [[England cricket team|England]], [[Zimbabwe national cricket team|Zimbabwe]] and the [[West Indies cricket team|West Indies]]. In 2001 a One-Day International between Australia and Pakistan was abandoned without a ball bowled due to rain.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.espncricinfo.com/pakistan/content/story/103257.html|title=Rain dominates: Australia - Pakistan share points|work=Cricinfo|date=16 June 2001|access-date=18 August 2013}}</ref>

2003 saw the Riverside Ground raised to Test match status;<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thejournal.co.uk/sport/cricket/flashback-durham-riverside-hosted-test-5197763|title=Dawning of a new era with Test cricket at Riverside|date=23 July 2013|access-date=18 August 2013}}</ref> it has hosted six England Test matches: against [[Zimbabwe national cricket team|Zimbabwe]] in 2003, [[Bangladesh national cricket team|Bangladesh]] in 2005, [[West Indies cricket team|West Indies]] in 2007 and 2009, [[Australia cricket team|Australia]] in 2013 and [[Sri Lanka cricket team|Sri Lanka]] in 2016. The fourth day of the West Indies Test, 18 June 2007, saw [[Paul Collingwood]] hitting a century on his home pitch for England against the West Indies, and so becoming the first local Durham player to hit a Test century at the Riverside.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/cricket/2315462/Collingwood-gives-England-hope.html|title=Collingwood gives England hope|newspaper=The Telegraph|date=18 June 2007|access-date=18 August 2013}}</ref>

It was announced in July 2009 that the ground would host the fourth [[The Ashes|Ashes Test match]] of the [[2013 Ashes series]],<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cricinfo.com/england/content/current/story/416953.html|title=Durham awarded Ashes Test in 2013|date=30 July 2009}}</ref> the culmination of Durham's growth as a First Class County since 1992<ref name="BBCAshes" /> coming after Durham missed out to Cardiff in its bid to host an Ashes test in 2009. Hosting an Ashes Test match was predicted to generate £20 million for the local economy.<ref name="AshesBBC">{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-tyne-23573714 |title=Ashes North East boost predicted to be more than £20m |access-date=2013-08-06|work=BBC News|date=6 August 2013 }}</ref>

The first scheduled [[Twenty20 International]] at the ground, against [[South Africa cricket team|South Africa]] in 2008, was abandoned due to heavy rain.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.espncricinfo.com/engvrsa/content/story/365518.html|title=Twenty20 called off a day early|work=Cricinfo|date=19 August 2008|access-date=18 August 2013}}</ref> In 2012 South Africa returned for the Riverside Ground's second Twenty20 match, defeating England by 7 wickets,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/cricket/19531284|title=England lose to South Africa in Twenty20 international|date=8 September 2012|access-date=18 August 2013}}</ref> in a match held alongside a [[Women's Twenty20 International|women's T20I]] against the [[West Indies women's cricket team|West Indies]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.espncricinfo.com/ci/content/story/581425.html|title=All-round England sweep to victory|work=Cricinfo|date=8 September 2012|access-date=18 August 2013}}</ref> A second T20I double header was hosted in August 2013, where England defeated Australia in both men's and women's matches. The women's match formed the final encounter of the [[Australian women's cricket team in England in 2013|2013 women's Ashes series]].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/cricket/england-women-cant-wait-for-their-chance-to-get-at-the-aussies-8755262.html|title=England women 'can't wait' for their chance to get at the Aussies|newspaper=The Independent|date=10 August 2013|access-date=18 August 2013}}</ref>

Further international matches held at the Riverside Ground included two ODI matches, against Sri Lanka in 2014 and New Zealand in 2015, and a Test match against Sri Lanka held in 2016.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.durhamccc.co.uk/news/ecb-and-durham-international-schedule-2013-16/|title=ECB and Durham agree International schedule at Emirates|publisher=Durham County Cricket Club|date=3 May 2013|access-date=18 August 2013}}</ref>

As part of the conditions of a package of financial support announced in October 2016, the ECB imposed a number of sanctions on Durham County Cricket Club, including removal of the club's eligibility to bid to stage Test cricket at the Riverside Ground.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ecb.co.uk/news/117022|title=ECB and Durham agree financial package|publisher=ECB|date=2016-10-03|access-date=2016-10-04}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.espncricinfo.com/county-cricket-2016/content/story/1060284.html|title=Durham relegated in return for ECB bailout, Hampshire stay up|publisher=ESPN Cricinfo|date=2016-10-03|access-date=2016-10-04}}</ref> The club will still be eligible to bid to host one-day and Twenty20 international matches, with a Twenty20 international against the West Indies scheduled to be held in 2017.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.espncricinfo.com/england/content/story/1031373.html|title=South Africa and West Indies confirmed for England's longest season|publisher=ESPN Cricinfo|date=2016-07-01|access-date=2016-10-04}}</ref>
It hosted three matches at the [[2019 Cricket World Cup]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.icc-cricket.com/media-releases/672392 |title=ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 schedule announced |publisher=[[International Cricket Council|ICC]] |date=14 June 2019}}</ref> Riverside Ground is the northernmost cricket ground in the world which has hosted a test match.

== Sponsorship ==
On 4 June 2010 it was announced that the stadium would be renamed the 'Emirates Durham International Cricket Ground' for [[stadium sponsorship|sponsorship reasons]]. In February 2016 it was again renamed, this time to 'Emirates Riverside', following the extension of Emirates' contract with the county until 2022. The ground reverted back to The Riverside Cricket Ground at the end of 2021 season due to the impact of Covid 19 on the airline.<ref>{{cite news|last=Wellock|first=Tim|title=A new name – but the same old story|url=http://www.durhamtimes.co.uk/sport/8203979.A_new_name_____but_the_same_old_story/|access-date=2 January 2011|newspaper=Durham Times|date=5 June 2010}}</ref>

== See also ==
{{Commons category|Riverside County Cricket Ground}}
*[[List of cricket grounds in England and Wales]]
*[[List of Test cricket grounds]]
*[[List of international cricket five-wicket hauls at the Riverside Ground]]

== References ==
{{reflist|colwidth=25em}}

== External links ==
* [http://www.durhamccc.org.uk/ Durham CCC]
* [http://content-uk.cricinfo.com/england/content/ground/56901.html Riverside Ground on Cricinfo]
* [http://www.ecb.co.uk/fans/grounds/grounds-riverside-chester-le-street,209,BP.html Riverside Ground on ECB]

{{Durham CCC}}
{{Northern Diamonds}}
{{Test Cricket Grounds ENG}}

[[Category:Cricket grounds in County Durham]]
[[Category:Test cricket grounds in England]]
[[Category:Sports venues completed in 1995]]
[[Category:Chester-le-Street]]
[[Category:1995 establishments in England]]
[[Category:1999 Cricket World Cup stadiums]]
[[Category:2019 Cricket World Cup stadiums]]

Riverside Ground - Revision history

Ajay Kumar: Created a new article