Leicestershire County Cricket Club bought in 1877 the land on which Grace Road now stands from the then Duke of Rutland, and spent the massive sum of £40,000 on developing a cricket club, athletic track and hotel.^[2] The first match played there took place three months later, when Leicestershire played a touring Australia team. Contrary to popular belief, the road was named after Grace Margaret Yearby, the daughter of a local property owner Edward John Yearby, not W. G. Grace.

Leicestershire CCC left the Grace Road site in 1901, owing to low attendances at matches, which were blamed on lack of public transport to the ground.^[3] The club moved to a site near to Aylestone Road in order to be closer to the city centre. Leicestershire eventually returned to Grace Road in 1946, after the end of the Second World War,^[4] and has been based there ever since, re-purchasing the land in 1966.

The record attendance, at Leicestershire's match against the touring 1948 Australians, is 16,000.

Three One Day Internationals have been played at Grace Road, although none has involved the England team.

In the 1983 Cricket World Cup eventual winners India, chasing a target of 156, beat Zimbabwe by five wickets.^[5] The second and third games were both in the 1999 World Cup. In the second Zimbabwe beat India by three runs,^[6] and in the third the West Indies beat Scotland by eight wickets.^[7]

Women's Test centuries edit

One WTest century has been scored at the venue.^[8]

Women's One-Day International centuries edit

Seven WODI centuries have been scored at the venue.^[9]

In front of the wicket at both ends the pitch is measured at 63 metres, while square of the wicket on both sides the dimensions are recorded as 76 metres. This is the largest county ground including England's major international venues such as the Oval.

• List of cricket grounds in England and Wales
• List of Leicestershire County Cricket Club grounds

52°36′28″N 1°08′34″W / 52.60778°N 1.14278°W / 52.60778; -1.14278