The Diamond Oval is a multi-purpose stadium located in Kimberley, the capital city of the Northern Cape province in South Africa.

Formerly known as De Beers Country Club, the 11,000-capacity venue was established in 1973. For the initial 25 years, it was used to stage various local tournaments before the first international match was held at the venue in April 1998 where Pakistan defeated Sri Lanka by four wickets.

Since then, the Diamond Oval has hosted 15 ODIs, including three league-phase matches in the 2003 World Cup.

Here are the ODI stats and records from the Diamond Oval.

ODI records at Diamond Oval

Highest team total

England scored 346/7 against the Proteas in the final ODI of the 2023 South Africa tour and it is the highest team total at Diamond Oval.

Batting first, the Englishmen rode on centuries from Dawid Malan and skipper Jos Buttler to set the daunting total, which eventually resulted in a 59-run win for the visitors

Lowest team total

Namibia were bundled out for 84 against Pakistan in a group match of the 2003 World Cup and it is the lowest team total at the venue.

Legendary Pakistani pacer Wasim Akram bagged a five-wicket haul (5/28) to derail the Namibians and help register an easy 171-run victory.

Average first innings score

The average first innings score in ODIs at Diamond Oval is 222, which suggests a decent batting pitch where competitive targets can be set.

Highest individual score

South Africa’s Quinton de Kock smashed an unbeaten 145-ball 168 against Bangladesh in October 2017 and it is the highest individual score at the stadium.

His knock, consisting of 21 fours and two maximums, guided the hosts to a comfortable 10-wicket win.

Best bowling

England seamer Jofra Archer recorded the best bowling figures in ODIs at Diamond Oval when he scalped 6/40 in the same match where his team smashed the highest team total at the venue.

Most runs

Former South African all-rounder Jacques Kallis amassed 249 runs in three ODIs at Diamond Oval, the most by any player. Moreover, all his three matches here saw the right-hander register a 50-plus score with a highest score of 93.

Most wickets

Veteran Proteas cricketer Shaun Pollock took 11 wickets in four matches here, with his best bowling performance of 4/24 coming against Bangladesh in October 2002. He averaged 13.18 at the venue and had a good economy of 3.76.

Highest partnership

In the same match where wicket-keeper batter Quinton de Kock recorded the highest individual score in ODIs at the Diamond Oval, his opening partner Hashim Amla also hit a ton as the duo forged a 282-run stand to set the record for the highest partnership at the venue.

 

Photo credit: Alamy