Sahara Stadium Kingsmead is a Cricket ground in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Its current stated capacity is 25000, although grass terracing makes up part of the viewing area. The ‘End names’ are the Umgeni End (north) and the Old Fort Road End (south). It is the home ground of the KwaZulu-Natal Dolphins.

When a Test series is played in South Africa, this ground usually hosts the Boxing Day Test.

This venue hosted the first Test for the South African cricket team after re-admission into international cricket and also hosted the timeless Test against the English cricket team in 1939. This Test lasted from the third to the thirteenth of March and was called off over fears that the English would miss their ship home.

The first Test match to be played here was between South Africa and England on January 18, 1923, which resulted in a draw.

It has been renowned as a seamers wicket, and there is also a famous myth regarding how the tide affects batting conditions, as the ground is quite close to the beach. Many batting collapses in matches in the past have been blamed on changes in the tide, but nobody has been able to prove this theory.

It is the stadium used every other year for the finish of the Comrades Marathon, an ultramarathon run annually between Durban and Pietermaritzburg. Because the run alternates directions each year, it only finishes in Durban in odd-numbered years.

(source .. wikipedia) reproduced under GFDL

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Sahara Stadium Kingsmead wikipedia entry
United Cricket Board of South Africa

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