Crowds flock to watch England at Fortress Edgbaston

CRICKET

BIRMINGHAM’S Edgbaston Stadium continued to build on its reputation as one of the England cricket team’s favourite grounds as Alastair Cook’s team surged to a 141-run victory in the final hour of play on Sunday.

Edgbaston, which has now hosted eight England victories in its last 12 Tests, accommodated 81,832 spectators across the five days of the third Investec Test Match, which delivered an estimated £14.6 million boost to the local economy according to a study from Marketing Birmingham.

Neil Snowball, chief executive of Warwickshire County Cricket Club, said: “England have a great record at Edgbaston and clearly love playing here, thanks to our new facilities and the special atmosphere generated by the fans.

“We were delighted to welcome more than 80,000 supporters, which is our biggest aggregate attendance for a Test since 2011. England’s Barmy Army staged their South Africa tour reunion in the Eric Hollies Stand over the weekend, and the Pakistan team were also well-supported throughout the match.

“Test Match cricket has a special place in the sporting calendar and we’re working hard to create the best experience possible for our spectators at Edgbaston. We thank all of the fans who have attended this Investec Test Match and hope that many will return to support England in Birmingham in 2017.”

Edgbaston hosts England’s first Test of the Investec Test Series against West Indies from Thursday 17th to Monday 21st August 2017 and will welcome India in 2018 and Australia for the Ashes in 2019.

Overall, the Birmingham venue hosts 28 days of major match cricket between 2017 and 2019, which also includes five matches in the prestigious ICC Champions Trophy in 2017 and ICC Cricket World Cup in 2019.