The Riverside Ground in Chester-le-Street, County Durham, is the home of Durham County Cricket Club. Durham’s entry into first-class cricket was made conditional on building a Test-standard ground; work began in 1990, and it staged its first match, Durham against Warwickshire, on 18 May 1995. It holds about 5,000 for county games and up to 17,000 for internationals, with Lumley Castle overlooking the ground.
It has staged 24 ODIs, the first on 20 May 1999, when Pakistan beat Scotland by 94 runs at the World Cup; one of the 24 was abandoned without a ball bowled and two more ended without a result. The latest was on 22 September 2026, when England beat Sri Lanka by 89 runs. The ground has also hosted six Tests and seven T20Is.
Riverside Ground ODI records at a glance
| Record | Holder | Detail |
|---|---|---|
| Highest total | Sri Lanka 338/6 | v West Indies, 2019 |
| Lowest total | England 99 | v Sri Lanka, 2014 |
| Highest individual score | Rassie van der Dussen 134 | South Africa v England, 2022 |
| Most runs | Jonny Bairstow 374 | England, 5 matches |
| Most wickets | Graeme Swann and David Willey 9 | England, 3 matches each |
| Best bowling | Will Jacks 5/22 | England v Sri Lanka, 2026 |
| Highest partnership | Grant Flower and Murray Goodwin 186* | 5th wicket, Zimbabwe v West Indies, 2000 |
Highest and lowest totals
Sri Lanka’s 338 for 6 against West Indies at the 2019 World Cup is the highest ODI total at the ground. Avishka Fernando made 104, and West Indies replied with 315 for 9, Nicholas Pooran scoring 118, to lose by 23 runs. South Africa’s 333 for 5 against England in 2022 is the next best.
The lowest is England’s 99 against Sri Lanka in May 2014. Chasing 257, they were bowled out in 26.1 overs, with off-spinner Sachithra Senanayake taking 4 for 13, and Sri Lanka won by 157 runs.
Most ODI runs at the Riverside Ground
| Batter | Team | Matches | Runs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jonny Bairstow | England | 5 | 374 |
| Joe Root | England | 7 | 264 |
| Jason Roy | England | 4 | 216 |
| Ian Bell | England | 5 | 206 |
| Harry Brook | England | 2 | 177 |
Jonny Bairstow made his 374 at an average of 93.50 and a strike rate of 117.98, with a hundred, 106 against New Zealand at the 2019 World Cup, and three fifties. Harry Brook has 177 from only two innings: 110 not out off 94 balls against Australia in September 2024, when England, chasing 305, were 254 for 4 after 37.4 overs when rain ended play and won by 46 runs on the DLS method, and 67 against Sri Lanka in 2026.
The highest individual score is Rassie van der Dussen’s 134 off 117 balls for South Africa in July 2022. South Africa made 333 for 5 and won by 62 runs. Mahela Jayawardene’s 126 not out for Sri Lanka in 2006 is second, and Pooran’s 118 third.
Most ODI wickets at the Riverside Ground
| Bowler | Team | Matches | Wickets |
|---|---|---|---|
| Graeme Swann | England | 3 | 9 |
| David Willey | England | 3 | 9 |
| James Anderson | England | 7 | 8 |
| Tim Bresnan | England | 4 | 7 |
| Lasith Malinga | Sri Lanka | 4 | 7 |
The best figures are now Will Jacks’s 5 for 22 against Sri Lanka on 22 September 2026. The off-spinner also made 46 not out as England posted 265, then took five wickets in seven overs to bowl Sri Lanka out for 176. That beat Graeme Swann’s 5 for 28 against Australia in 2009, which had stood as the ground record for 17 years; England won that match by four wickets, although Australia took the series 6-1.
Highest partnership
Grant Flower and Murray Goodwin added 186 not out for the fifth wicket for Zimbabwe against West Indies in July 2000. Chasing 288, Zimbabwe were 104 for 4 when they came together, and Goodwin (112 not out) and Flower (96 not out) took them home by six wickets. Hashim Amla and Faf du Plessis’s unbroken 175 for South Africa against Sri Lanka at the 2019 World Cup is next.
Photo credit: Imago