In 2020, the ground was used as one of two biosecure venues, alongside Old Trafford, for the tours involving West Indies, Pakistan and Ireland which were regulated due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Following Hampshire Cricket Ltd finding itself in financial trouble in 2011, the lease on the ground was sold to Eastleigh Borough Council for £6.5 million with a benefactor injecting a similar sum in 2012.

[2] Hampshire had played at their Northlands Road headquarters in Southampton since 1885, as well as using Dean Park in Bournemouth, the United Services Recreation Ground in Portsmouth and May's Bounty in Basingstoke as regular outground venues.

Northlands Road was a cramped location, surrounded by residential buildings which meant expanding the ground was largely impossible.

Talk of a move from Newlands Road had begun as early as 1987, with Mark Nicholas discussing the idea with then Hampshire vice-chairman Bill Hughes in a Leeds restaurant.

[3] A site was eventually selected just outside Southampton, in West End, on a gently sloping field owned by Queen's College, Oxford located between the M27 motorway and Telegraph Woods.

[15] In 2004, the ground hosted another ODI between New Zealand and the West Indies in the 2004 NatWest Series, though the match was abandoned without a ball bowled.

The ground later held five ODIs during that seasons Champions Trophy, which saw India post 290/4 against Kenya, the United States dismissed for 65 by Australia, and Mervyn Dillon take figures of 5/29 for the West Indies against Bangladesh: all three of these records remain to this day in terms of the highest and lowest innings scores in ODI cricket at the ground, as well as the best innings bowling figures.

During the course of the tournament, England also played there for the first time, against Sri Lanka,[14] though The Rose Bowl was criticised for its organisation of the match, with spectators citing access to the ground, long queues and stringent searches at the gate among complaints.

The early years at the ground were notable for immature wickets that favoured seam bowling, resulting in many low scoring encounters.

In the first season, seamer Alan Mullally took 8/90 against Warwickshire in the County Championship, which remains the best innings bowling figures at the ground.

[20] This rejection persuaded Hampshire chairman Bransgrove to invest £35 million in redeveloping the ground, which would include the construction of a new access road to alleviate the transport problems which have affected major matches,[21] the expansion of the ground's capacity and the construction of a hotel to make the Rose Bowl more financially viable for Hampshire.

[22] The plans called for the construction of two matching stands either side of the pavilion to increase the permanent capacity to 15,000,[23] as well as a four-star, 175-room hotel overlooking the ground at the northern end.

It was a heavily rain affected match that ended in a draw, but did see Ian Bell and Kumar Sangakkara score the first Test centuries at the ground, in addition to Chris Tremlett taking the first five wicket haul.

The council also administered some £30million Prudential Funding from Central Government for the building of the hotel, which was given the go-ahead after the legal action by local hoteliers was quashed at the High Court.

On 29 August 2013, the Australian opener Aaron Finch set a new record for Twenty20 international cricket when he scored 156 runs off 63 balls for Australia against England at the Rose Bowl.

In 2020 the ground was used as one of two biosecure venues, alongside Old Trafford, for the tours involving West Indies, Pakistan and Ireland which were regulated due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The cricket club announced in February 2012 that a six-year sponsorship deal had been signed with Ageas, an insurance provider headquartered in nearby Eastleigh.

[38] The two new stands include permanent catering facilities along the internal concourse of the ground floor, which were lacking prior to the redevelopment.