Nairobi Gymkhana Club is a cricket ground and team in Nairobi, Kenya. It hosted two matches during the 2003 Cricket World Cup. The ground has a capacity of 7,000 people. It is located north of the central business district, but not far from it. The ground is the main cricket venue in the country and the only one which could in any way be described as a major ground.

Cricket

The ground is home to a cricket team of the same name, which is one of the oldest cricket clubs in Kenya. Earlier the ground was called Suleman Verjee Indian Gymkhana having been donated by the Suleman Verjee family at a time when no recreational facilities of scale were available to Indians in Kenya. The land was allocated by the Governor of Kenya to the Indian Association in 1927.

The ground is home to one of Kenya's oldest and most influential clubs, the Gymkhana has hosted colonial and other important matches since the early 1900s but it really began to develop as Kenya became a serious force in world cricket in the 1990s.

It has become the main cricket ground in Kenya and hosts International games for the National team. It was at this ground, that Shahid Afridi scored the (then) fastest ODI century in 1997 from just 37 balls.

Investment in the ground accelerated with ICC grants which enabled it to host the 2000 ICC Champions Trophy although since then it has suffered from a lack on investment resulting from Kenya's internal problems. The ground itself is a mixture of grass banking and wooden stands, with a modern pavilion on one side and a new media centre, constructed for the 2000 tournament, at one end.

As with many such clubs in Kenya, the Gymkhana is home to a variety of other sports as well as providing comfortable accommodation. Situated almost 5,500 feet above sea level, it is one of the highest first-class grounds.

The 2026 Asian Legends League (Season 2) is scheduled to be held at the Nairobi Gymkhana Club from 2 to 14 June 2026. The tournament is expected to feature six Asian teams competing in a total of 19 Twenty20 (T20) matches during the season.

Facilities

The Gymkhana club also has a small inside area with a badminton court and further in, an outdoor area with a swimming pool and a restaurant.

Transportation

Nairobi Gymkhana is situated a 20-minute taxi ride and is about 15 km from the airport. Parking near the ground is limited.

List of Centuries One Day Internationals

No. Score Player Team Balls Inns. Opposing team Date Result 1 100* Romesh Kaluwitharana 89 2 28 September 1996 Won 2 124 Daryll Cullinan 117 1 29 September 1996 Won 3 121 Jonty Rhodes 114 1 29 September 1996 Won 4 115 Saeed Anwar 120 1 4 October 1996 Won 5 102 Shahid Afridi 40 1 4 October 1996 Won 6 122 Aravinda de Silva 116 2 4 October 1996 Lost 7 118* Gary Kirsten 127 2 6 October 1996 Won 8 122 Dipak Chudasama 113 1 10 October 1997 Won 9 144 Kennedy Otieno 146 1 10 October 1997 Won 10 101* Lance Klusener 105 2 28 September 1999 Won 11 139 Sourav Ganguly 147 1 1 October 1999 Won 12 132 Avishka Gunawardene 146 1 4 October 2000 Won 13 105* Saeed Anwar 134 2 8 October 2000 Won 14 104 Saeed Anwar 115 1 11 October 2000 Lost 15 141* Sourav Ganguly 142 1 13 October 2000 Won 16 117 Sourav Ganguly 130 1 15 October 2000 Lost 17 102* Chris Cairns 113 2 15 October 2000 Won 18 146 Matthew Hayden 128 1 30 August 2002 Won 19 116 Jeremy Bray 136 1 30 January 2007 Lost 20 100 Neil McCallum 92 2 30 January 2007 Won 21 104 Darron Reekers 82 1 5 February 2007 Won 22 111* Thomas Odoyo 113 2 18 October 2007 Won 23 102 Steve Tikolo 99 1 19 October 2008 Won 24 109* Ryan ten Doeschate 121 1 16 February 2010 Lost

List of five-wicket hauls

One Day Internationals + Five-wicket hauls in Men's One Day Internationals at Gymkhana Club Ground No. Bowler Date Team Opposing TeamInnORW Result 1 Allan Donald 2 9 23 6 South Africa won5th Match, KCA Centenary Tournament at Nairobi (Gym), Oct 3 1996, CricInfo. Retrieved 14 February 2020. 2 Waqar Younis 2 8.5 52 5 Pakistan won6th Match, KCA Centenary Tournament at Nairobi (Gym), Oct 4 1996, CricInfo. Retrieved 14 February 2020. 3 Aasif Karim 2 10 33 5 Kenya won1st Match, President's Cup at Nairobi (Gym), Oct 10 1997, CricInfo. Retrieved 14 February 2020. 4 Sunil Joshi 1 10 6 5 India won2nd Match, LG Cup at Nairobi (Gym), Sep 26 1999, CricInfo. Retrieved 14 February 2020. 5 Shayne O'Connor 1 9.2 46 5 New Zealand won1st SF, ICC KnockOut at Nairobi (Gym), Oct 11 2000, CricInfo. Retrieved 14 February 2020. 6 Jason Gillespie 2 10 22 5 Australia won2nd Match, PSO Tri-Nation Tournament at Nairobi (Gym), Aug 30 2002, CricInfo. Retrieved 14 February 2020. 7 Jason Gillespie 1 10 70 5 No resultFinal, PSO Tri-Nation Tournament at Nairobi (Gym), Sep 7 2002, CricInfo. Retrieved 14 February 2020. 8 Collins Obuya 2 10 24 5 Kenya won26th Match, ICC World Cup at Nairobi (Gym), Feb 24 2003, CricInfo. Retrieved 14 February 2020. 9 Mashrafe Mortaza 1 10 26 6 Bangladesh won3rd ODI, Bangladesh tour of Kenya at Nairobi (Gym), Aug 15 2006, CricInfo. Retrieved 14 February 2020. 10 Chris Mpofu 1 10 52 6 Kenya won3rd Match, Tri-Nation Tournament in Kenya at Nairobi (Gym), Oct 19 2008, CricInfo. Retrieved 14 February 2020.

Twenty20 Internationals + Five-wicket hauls in Men's Twenty20 Internationals at Gymkhana Club Ground No. Bowler Date Team Opposing TeamInnORW Result 1 Nehemiah Odhiambo 1 4 20 5 Kenya wonKenya won by 10 wickets (with 33 balls remaining), CricInfo. Retrieved 14 February 2020. 2 Sandeep Lamichhane 1 4 9 5 Kenya wonKenya won by 7 runs , CricInfo. Retrieved 17 February 2023.

Notes

References

External links Cricinfo CricketArchive