It was built for the 2011 Cricket World Cup and hosted two matches, the first being Sri Lanka against Canada, on 20 February 2011.

The proposal for a new International Cricket Stadium at Sooriyawewa was part of the government's programme to develop sports in the Southern Province of Sri Lanka as part of the government's plan to transform Hambantota into the second major urban hub of Sri Lanka, away from Colombo.

The Mahinda Rajapaksa International Stadium hosted three 2012 ICC World Twenty20 matches and the inaugural edition of Lanka Premier League in 2020.

[4][5] The ministers of opposition criticize that former government has hidden the true story of actual cost for its construction.

[7] In 2016, after the inspections by Sri Lanka Cricket, president Thilanga Sumathipala pointed out that the walls, carpets, furniture and equipment in the stadium were in a severe state of neglect and deterioration without any attempt to revive the facility to its earlier status.