Until 2019, the county held the Tunbridge Wells Cricket Week on the ground annually, despite a suffragette arson attack which destroyed the pavilion in 1913.
[5] The original cricket pavilion on the ground was designed by local architect CH Strange and built in 1903 at a cost of £1,200.
[16] Tunbridge Wells Borough Council has erected a temporary grandstand at the ground for some cricket weeks, sometimes funded by local businesses.
[18][19] It is generally believed that the fire was caused by militant suffragettes as part of a country-wide campaign of arson and other violent opposition to the withdrawal of the 1912 Franchise Bill co-ordinated by the Women's Social and Political Union.
[19] The attack has often been linked to a comment from an unknown Kent official who is reported to have said "It is not true that women are banned from the pavilion.
The National League for Opposing Woman Suffrage held a meeting in the town with Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, who was a member of Tunbridge Wells Cricket Club, where he called the suffragettes "female hooligans"[7] and compared the attack to "blowing up a blind man and his dog".
Kapil Dev scored 175 not out, made after the Indian side was initially reduced to 17 for 5, helped India win by 31 runs.
[38] Dev's partnership of 126 runs with Syed Kirmani set a world record for the largest ninth wicket stand in ODI cricket.
[38] Leading Indian players such as Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid have spoken about how India winning the tournament inspired them to dream of playing for their country.
The tape was purchased by Dev after the match for an unknown amount,[43] although it has been claimed that this is an urban legend and that there was no proof of this occurring.
Afterwards he was welcomed by representatives of Kent County Cricket Club and Tunbridge Wells Borough Council.
[44] The ground was one of the venues used in the 1993 Women's Cricket World Cup, hosting one match between Australia and the West Indies.
[46] Another 27 List A fixtures have been played, all but one featuring Kent as the home side, the other being the One Day International between India and Zimbabwe held during the 1983 World Cup.
[48] Kapil Dev's 175 not out against Zimbabwe was a One Day International record for the highest number of individual runs scored.
This record stood for 27 years before being beaten by Angelo Mathews and Lasith Malinga for Sri Lanka.