ANNUAL REPORT 2019

MINUTES OF THE 2019 ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING 49 which produced a more balanced squad for the 2019 season that should produce a much stronger force to be reckoned with. Four players had moved on to other counties – Matt Milnes, RikiWessels, Will Fraine and Billy Root, and Mr Tennant wished them well and thanked them for their contribution to the club. 2018 brought three major matches which were, again, a great success for Trent Bridge.The first of these, a One-Day International versus Australia, saw records tumble with England reaching a world record score of 481 and winning by a record margin of 242 runs.The fact that Alex Hales had scored a mag- nificent 147 not out was the icing on the cake. The next match was the One-Day International versus India, which saw England’s fortunes reverse – thanks to KuldeepYadav’s six for 25 and Rohit Sharma’s unbeaten 137. The host nation fared no better in the Test Match, andVirat Kohli with 97 in the first innings and 103 in the second was rightly awarded ‘Man of the Match’. Despite England being on the losing side, it was nonetheless a privilege to witness one of the all-time greats performing so imperiously. All three of our international matches saw a full ground and some great cricket, which once again con- firmedTrent Bridge as one of the world’s major international venues. Off the field, Mr Tennant remarked, there had been much to deliberate on over the previous 12 months, as the club played its part in helping formulate the ECB’s strategy for cricket for the following five years – whilst considering how Notting- hamshire could excel in delivering the new County Partnership Agree- ments at local level. All the Counties had been involved in a process that had been more consultative than ever before and the results of which would be so important for the future of cricket. The off-field performance had also provided much cause for celebration. The major matches helped the club deliver yet another very successful year financially.The surplus of just over £900,000 was very welcome, but again, the importance of being a Host Venue for major matches, and the status it brings, cannot be overstated. Building and maintaining a Test Match venue was a very expensive business and whilst reviews con- tinued on the feasibility of further ground developments, financing such projects was becoming increas- ingly challenging. Over the years, the support of the local authorities had been vital, but any development required substan- tial borrowings. This meant that prioritisation of those projects was necessary to retainTrent Bridge’s major match status. The latest development project in the Radcliffe Road stand was now complete, and the enhanced media facilities were very much needed and were now in full operation for the international matches during the season. The long-awaited opening of