Sabina Park
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Sabina Park, the home of the Kingston Cricket Club, is a Test cricket ground in Kingston, Jamaica. It is located in the part of Kingston with the driest microclimate, and for many years the pitch was one of the hardest and fastest in the Caribbean.
Sabina Park became a Test cricket ground in 1930 when it hosted the visiting MCC team for the second Test in the West Indies' first home series. This picturesque ground is perhaps one of the most significant in Test cricket history recording the first triple century in the game with England's Andy Sandham's 325 versus the West Indies in the 1930 game. The 365 not out by Sir Garfield Sobers which stood as a Test record for over 36 years is more regaled, as was Lawrence Rowe's world record on debut 214 and 100 not out against the visiting New Zealanders in 1972.
The George Headley stand which dominates the south end, and the ground, holds 8,000. Going eastwards, you meet the "grounds" section. Uncovered and populated by the "true cricket fans", as opposed to those who can afford the stands.
The north end of the ground is dominated by a huge 5 level concrete stand which hosts the outside broadcast facilities, players facilities as well as a fleet of upscale private boxes.
The members pavilion lies square of the wicket on the west side. A charming old wooden building, it still remains one of the places to be seen at a cricket match, despite the poor location. Rather, no member is allowed to say a lady's name in the club, or else he buys drinks for everyone there. This has its roots in a dispute, where a man mentioned a woman's name as having a liaison with her. Unfortunately for him, her husband was right behind him.
The spectacular Blue Mountains form a picturesque and spectacular backdrop to the north facing the George Headley Stand, with Kingston Harbour to the south. Sadly, all of this view is now obscured by the imposing Northern Stand, built as part of the ground's redevelopment for the 2007 Cricket World Cup.
In terms of size, Sabina Park is relatively small. It can fit a 400 metre running track comfortably on its perimeter, but little else, and capacity estimates range from 12000 to 15,000 depending on who you talk to.
Sabina Park's greatest moment in Test cricket was the 365 not out made by Garry Sobers against the Pakistanis that stood for many years as the highest individual test score. Conversely its worst moment was when the England - West Indies Test in 1998 was abandoned on the opening day due to an appalling pitch endangering the players.
[edit] External links
| Venues of the 2007 Cricket World Cup West Indies |
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| Warner Park (St. Kitts and Nevis) • Queen's Park Oval (Port of Spain) • Beausejour Stadium (Saint Lucia) • Sabina Park (Kingston) • Sir Vivian Richards Stadium (Antigua and Barbuda) • Providence Stadium (Guyana) • Kensington Oval (Bridgetown) |
