View source for Bristol County Ground

{{Short description|Cricket ground}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2020}}
{{Use British English|date=February 2023}}
{{Redirect|Seat Unique Stadium|the Seat Unique Riverside ground in County Durham|Riverside Ground}}
{{Infobox cricket ground
|       ground_name = Bristol County Ground
|          nickname = Fry's Ground, Nevil Road
|             image = 2022BCG.jpg
|           country = England
|          location = [[Ashley Down]], [[Bristol]]
| coordinates = {{coord|51|28|38.01|N|2|35|02.96|W|region:GB-BST_type:landmark|display=title,inline}}
|     establishment = 1889
|  seating_capacity = 8,000 <br>''17,500 for 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 = Ashley Down Road End [[Image:BristolCountyCricketGroundPitchDimensions.svg|200px]]
|              end2 = Bristol Pavilion End
|     international = true
|      firstodidate = 13 June
|      firstodiyear = 1983
|      firstodihome = New Zealand
|      firstodiaway = Sri Lanka
|       lastodidate = 29 September
|       lastodiyear = 2024
|       lastodihome = England
|       lastodiaway = Australia

|      firstt20idate = 28 August
|      firstt20iyear = 2006
|      firstt20ihome = England
|      firstt20iaway = Pakistan
|       lastt20idate = 8 June 
|       lastt20iyear = 2025
|       lastt20ihome = England
|       lastt20iaway = West Indies

|     firstwtestdate = 
|     firstwtestyear = 
|     firstwtesthome = 
|     firstwtestaway = 
|      lastwtestdate = 
|      lastwtestyear = 
|      lastwtesthome = 
|      lastwtestaway = 
|      onlywtestdate = 16–19 June
|      onlywtestyear = 2021
|      onlywtesthome = England
|      onlywtestaway = India

|      firstwodidate = 21 July 
|      firstwodiyear = 1984
|      firstwodihome = England
|      firstwodiaway = New Zealand 
|       lastwodidate = 3 July
|       lastwodiyear = 2024
|       lastwodihome = England
|       lastwodiaway = New Zealand

|     firstwt20idate = 25 June 
|     firstwt20iyear = 2011
|     firstwt20ihome = England
|     firstwt20iaway = Australia
|      lastwt20idate = 15 September
|      lastwt20iyear = 2022
|      lastwt20ihome = England
|      lastwt20iaway = India

|             year1 = 1889 &ndash; present
|             club1 = [[Gloucestershire County Cricket Club|Gloucestershire]]
|              date = 29 September
|              year = 2024
|            source = http://www.espncricinfo.com/gloucestershire/content/ground/56831.html CricInfo
}}

The '''Bristol County Ground''' (also known as '''Nevil Road''' and currently known as the '''Seat Unique Stadium''' for sponsorship reasons<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.gloscricket.co.uk/news/gloucestershires-bristol-home-renamed-as-seat-unique-stadium-after-signing-historic-ground-naming-rights-deal/ |title=Gloucestershire’s Bristol home renamed as Seat Unique Stadium after signing historic Ground Naming Rights deal |publisher=[[Gloucestershire County Cricket Club]] |date=8 March 2022}}</ref>) is a senior [[cricket]] venue in [[Bristol]], [[England]]. It is in the district of [[Ashley Down]]. The ground is home to [[Gloucestershire County Cricket Club]].

==History==
Initially known as '''Ashley Down Ground''', it was bought in 1889 by [[W. G. Grace]] and has been home to Gloucestershire ever since.  It was sold to local confectionery firm [[J. S. Fry & Sons]] and renamed '''Fry's Ground'''. The club bought the ground back in 1933 and it reverted to its original name. It was sold again in 1976, this time to [[Royal & Sun Alliance]] who renamed the ground the '''Phoenix County Ground''' for eight years before changing to '''The Royal & Sun Alliance County Ground''' until the ground was again bought by the club and took it up its current title. 

[[File:WGGraceBustBCG.jpg|thumb|left|Bust of WG Grace outside the Bristol Pavilion]]


The ground hosts [[One Day Internationals]], usually one per year, with the addition of temporary seating to increase the ground's capacity. [[England cricket team|England]] faced [[India national cricket team|India]] in 2018 and [[Pakistan national cricket team|Pakistan]] in 2019 at the ground. In addition, three matches were scheduled to be played at the ground as part of 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>   Of these three, two were abandoned without a ball being bowled due to bad weather. The only match played was Australia v Afghanistan - a match Australia won by 7 wickets.

The ground has long boundaries in comparison to most county cricket clubs.

The former concrete roof over the public terraces, which has now been demolished, was formed from eight hyperbolic-paraboloid umbrellas each approximately {{convert|30|sqft|sqm}}, designed by T. H. B. Burrough in 1960.<ref name="burrough">{{cite book |last=Burrough |first=THB |title=Bristol |year=1970 |publisher=Studio Vista |location=London |isbn=0-289-79804-3 }}</ref>

== Redevelopment ==
In July 2009, Gloucestershire C.C.C. announced plans to redevelop the ground into a 20,000-capacity stadium, with an aim to retaining one day international status.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/gloucestershire/8171455.stm |title=Cricket ground's future unveiled| work=BBC Bristol Sports |publisher=BBC News |date=28 July 2009 |access-date=2009-07-28 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Club Statement to Members|url=http://www.gloscricket.co.uk/club-statement-to-members/|publisher=Gloucestershire Cricket|access-date=14 September 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170914172347/http://www.gloscricket.co.uk/club-statement-to-members/|archive-date=14 September 2017|url-status=dead}}</ref> The ground now includes a world class media centre and conference facilities. To help fund the project, student accommodation is included in the development. In March 2010, [[Bristol City Council]] gave the go-ahead for the new ground.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/gloucestershire/8561119.stm |title=Go-ahead to expand cricket club |work=BBC News |access-date=2010-03-10 | date=10 March 2010}}</ref>

The following year, the club revised its plans due to concerns from residents on the adjacent Kennington Avenue over permanent stands at the boundary of their property. The permanent capacity was raised to 7,500 (8,000 including the semi-permanent Hammond Roof) with temporary seating increasing capacity to 17,500,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-gloucestershire-12338207|title=Gloucestershire County Cricket Club alters ground plans|publisher=BBC West|date=2 February 2011|access-date=10 September 2011}}</ref> but with other changes still implemented: new pavilion, new conference facilities and the construction of new stands (including the demolition of the Jessop stand and Tavern and the rebuilding of the Mound stand to a fixed capacity of 4,500) and  147 [[apartments]] in three blocks. These plans were approved on 31 May 2012 and development began in October 2012. The Bristol Pavilion opened in August 2013.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.venue.co.uk/lifestyle-features/21017-grounds-for-celebration |title=Grounds for Celebration |newspaper=[[Venue (magazine)|Venue]] |location=Bristol |date=27 August 2013 |access-date=14 October 2013 }}</ref> Permanent floodlights were approved by Bristol City Council in April 2015, which were installed ready for the start of the 2016 season and which allowed the club to continue to host international matches as well as the four 2019 Cricket World Cup matches it was allocated.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.gloscricket.co.uk/floodlight-planning-application-approved/|title=Floodlight planning application approved|publisher=Gloucestershire County Cricket Club|date=29 April 2015|access-date=14 May 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150518104518/http://www.gloscricket.co.uk/floodlight-planning-application-approved/|archive-date=18 May 2015|url-status=dead}}</ref>

{{wide image|2025BCG.jpg|900px|align-cap=center|Panorama of the Bristol County Ground in 2025}}

==Transport connections==
[[Ashley Down railway station]] opened on 28th September 2024 and is 0.3 miles from the stadium. <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-bristol-64861060 |title=New Ashley Down railway station construction gets under way |publisher=[[BBC News]] |date=7 March 2023}}</ref> [[Montpelier railway station|Montpelier]] on the [[Severn Beach line]] is under {{convert|1|mi|km}} from the ground. Mainline stations [[Bristol Temple Meads railway station|Bristol Temple Meads]] and [[Bristol Parkway railway station|Bristol Parkway]] are {{convert|2.5|mi|km}} and {{convert|3.8|mi|km}}, respectively, from the ground.

==International centuries==
=== One-Day International centuries ===
The following table summarises the One-Day International centuries scored at Bristol County Ground.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://stats.espncricinfo.com/england/engine/records/batting/most_runs_innings.html?class=2;id=176;type=ground|title=County Ground, Bristol / Records / One-Day Internationals / High scores|access-date=1 January 2017}}</ref>

{| class="wikitable sortable" style="font-size:95%"
! No. !! Score !! Player !! Team !! Balls !! Opposing team !! Date !! Result
|-
| 1 || 140* || [[Sachin Tendulkar]] (1/2) || {{cr|IND}} || {{ntsh|1100}} 101 || {{cr|KEN}} || {{dts|format=dmy|1999|May|23}} || Won
|-
| 2 || 104* || [[Rahul Dravid]] || {{cr|IND}} || {{ntsh|1100}} 109 || {{cr|KEN}} || {{dts|format=dmy|1999|May|23}} || Won
|-
| 3 || 102 || [[Ricky Ponting]] || {{cr|AUS}} || {{ntsh|1100}} 101 || {{cr|ENG}} || {{dts|format=dmy|2001|June|10}} || Won
|-
| 4 || 113 || [[Sachin Tendulkar]] (2/2) || {{cr|IND}} || {{ntsh|1100}} 101 || {{cr|SL}} || {{dts|format=dmy|2002|July|11}} || Won
|-
| 5 || 106 || [[Andrew Flintoff]] || {{cr|ENG}} || {{ntsh|1100}} 121 || {{cr|NZ}} || {{dts|format=dmy|2004|July|4}} || Lost
|-
| 6 || 102 || [[Moeen Ali]] || {{cr|ENG}} || {{ntsh|0570}} 57 || {{cr|WIN}} || {{dts|format=dmy|2017|September|24}} || Won
|-
| 7 || 151 || [[Imam-ul-Haq]] || {{cr|PAK}} || {{ntsh|1310}} 131 || {{cr|ENG}} || {{dts|format=dmy|2019|May|14}} || Lost
|-
| 8 || 128 || [[Jonny Bairstow]] || {{cr|ENG}} || {{ntsh|0930}} 93 || {{cr|PAK}} || {{dts|format=dmy|2019|May|14}} || Won
|-
| 9 || 107* || [[Ben Duckett]] || {{cr|ENG}} || {{ntsh|0780}} 78 || {{cr|IRL}} || {{dts|format=dmy|2023|September|26}} || No result
|}

===T20 International centuries===
There has only been one T20 International century at this venue.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://stats.espncricinfo.com/ci/engine/records/batting/most_runs_innings.html?class=3;id=176;type=ground|title=High scores in T20I at Bristol}}</ref>
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="font-size:95%"
! No. !! Score !! Player !! Team !! Balls !! Opposing team !! Date !! Result
|-
| 1 || 100* || [[Rohit Sharma]] || {{cr|IND}} || {{ntsh|1100}} 56 || {{cr|ENG}} || {{dts|format=dmy|2018|July|08}} || Won
|}

=== Women's One-Day International centuries ===
The following table summarises the women's One-Day International centuries scored at Bristol County Ground<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://stats.espncricinfo.com/ci/engine/stats/index.html?class=9;ground=176;template=results;type=batting;view=innings|title=Batting records {{!}} Women's One-Day Internationals {{!}} Cricinfo Statsguru {{!}} ESPN Cricinfo|work=Cricinfo|access-date=2017-07-27}}</ref>
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="font-size:95%"
! No. !! Score !! Player !! Team !! Balls !! Opposing team !! Date !! Result
|-
| 1 
|104
|[[Meg Lanning]] (1/2)
|{{crw|AUS}}
|98
|{{crw|ENG}}
|23 July 2015
|Won
|-
| 2 
|106*
|[[Suzie Bates]]
|{{crw|NZL}} 
|109
|{{crw|SRI}}
|24 June 2017
|Won
|-
| 3 
|178*
|[[Chamari Atapattu]]
|{{crw|SRI}}
|143
|{{crw|AUS}}
|29 June 2017
|Lost
|-
| 4 
|152*
|[[Meg Lanning]] (2/2)
|{{crw|AUS}}
|135
|{{crw|SRI}}
|29 June 2017
|Won
|-
|5
|147
|[[Sarah Taylor (cricketer)|Sarah Taylor]]
|{{crw|ENG}}
|104
|{{crw|RSA}}
|5 July 2017
|Won
|-
|6
|148
|[[Tammy Beaumont]]
|{{crw|ENG}}
|145
|{{crw|RSA}}
|5 July 2017
|Won
|-
|7
|106
|[[Poonam Raut]]
|{{crw|IND}}
|136
|{{crw|AUS}}
|12 July 2017
|Lost
|-
|8
|107
|[[Sophia Dunkley]]
|{{crw|ENG}}
|93
|{{crw|RSA}}
|15 July 2022
|Won
|}

== See also ==
*[[List of cricket grounds in England and Wales]]

== References ==
{{reflist}}

{{Gloucestershire CCC}}
{{Western Storm}}
{{Cricket in England}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Cricket grounds in Bristol]]
[[Category:Music venues in Bristol]]
[[Category:Sports venues completed in 1889]]