Photo by PICRYL, CC by 1.0
Cricket has been played in England since at least the 16th century. Most of the early grounds that birthed the sport have long since disappeared under housing developments and railway lines. However, a handful survived. It’s these oldest cricket grounds in the world that offer an insight into more than three centuries of sporting history, a connection no modern stadium can match.
Mitcham Cricket Green (1685)
The oldest cricket ground still in use isn’t Lord’s or The Oval. It’s in Mitcham, south London, where cricket has been played continuously since 1685.
Evidence for this comes from an old print reportedly inscribed “Crickette on Ye Olde Meecham Green” and dated 340 years ago. Mitcham Cricket Club claims to be the oldest club in existence, and no other has seriously challenged it.
Admiral Lord Nelson reportedly watched cricket here, while W.G. Grace played on this turf too. But its shining moment was in 1937, when a women’s match between Surrey and Australia drew an estimated 10,000 spectators. That’s a fairly impressive number, even for today’s game.
Today, the pavilion sits across the A23 from the playing surface – an odd arrangement, but one the club has made work since 1904. It’s unlikely Mitcham will ever host a Test match, yet its place in cricket history is secure as one of the oldest cricket grounds in the world.
Lord’s Cricket Ground (1814)
Lord’s is the “Home of Cricket” and headquarters for the MCC, the organisation that wrote the Laws of the Game. But the current ground at St John’s Wood is actually the third venue to bear the name.
Thomas Lord opened his first ground in 1787 on Dorset Fields. When the lease expired, he moved his turf (literally dug it up and transported it) to a new site in 1811. That ground lasted just two years before Parliament requisitioned the land for the Regent’s Canal, so Lord moved his venue yet again in 1814.
The first match at the present ground took place on 22 June 1814 between MCC and Hertfordshire. The famous slope, dropping over eight feet from the Pavilion End to the Nursery End, exists because the site was originally a duck pond on a hill. That quirk still influences matches today, with bowlers from the Pavilion End getting natural movement down the slope – something that the best cricket betting sites account for in their markets.
Lord’s has hosted more than 140 Test matches and multiple World Cup finals. The Victorian pavilion, built in 1889-90, also houses the world’s oldest sporting museum. When touring teams arrive in England, a match at Lord’s still represents the pinnacle, centuries after it was first played upon.
Trent Bridge (1838)
William Clarke spotted an opportunity when he married the landlady of the Trent Bridge Inn in Nottingham. The meadow behind the pub looked perfect for cricket, and by 1838 he had formed it into a proper ground.
The venue hosted its first Test match in 1899, a draw against Australia that coincided with W.G. Grace’s final Test appearance. More recently, Stuart Broad took 8/15 here as Australia were bowled out for just 60 in 2015.
Trent Bridge retains its Victorian feel despite recent modernisation. The pavilion faces the wicket at an angle, and the ground holds around 17,500 spectators – a far cry from the few hundred who gathered in Clarke’s day.
The Oval (1845)
The Oval beats Lord’s when it comes to international cricket. The ground hosted the first Test match on English soil in September 1880, where England defeated Australia by five wickets.
Funnily enough, this is where The Ashes originated too. Not immediately, but after Australia’s 1882 victory, which prompted a mock obituary declaring English cricket dead.
Also, Don Bradman’s final Test innings took place at The Oval in 1948. There, he needed just four runs to finish with a career average of exactly 100, but was bowled second ball for a duck.
The ground holds around 23,500 spectators and traditionally hosts the final Test of each English summer.
The Oldest Cricket Grounds in the World: Beyond England
England dominates the list of historic grounds, but cricket spread across the British Empire during the 19th century leading to several other historic venues.
The Sydney Cricket Ground dates to 1848, when British soldiers used the land for matches. It hosted its first Test in 1882 and is still one of the most iconic grounds in the sport with a capacity exceeding 44,000.
The Melbourne Cricket Ground is slightly younger, established in 1853, but holds greater historical significance as the site of the very first Test match in March 1877. The MCG now seats over 100,000 and hosts the Boxing Day Test each year.
Across the ditch, New Zealand’s Basin Reserve in Wellington opened in 1868. It’s still one of the country’s premier Test venues, despite its modest capacity of around 11,600.
Why These Old Cricket Grounds Matter
It’s 2025. Why are we talking about these old cricket grounds? Well, modern fans can watch matches in stadiums with retractable roofs, LED lighting, and capacities exceeding 100,000. But something is lost when cricket moves to purpose-built venues with no connection to the sport’s past.
The oldest grounds carry history – literally, check out their honour boards. You can stand at Lord’s knowing W.G. Grace walked the same turf, or visit Mitcham and watch club cricket on a green where the game has been played for over 340 years. Cricket’s oldest cricket grounds in the world remind us that this sport is something bigger than overselves, and these venues connect each new generation to those who came before.
Cheesy? Yes. Important to have a full appreciation of cricket? Also yes.
