Hampshire County Cricket Club begun on Hampshire's long-awaited new ground. The realisation of this move almost led the club to financial ruin, as encouragement from financial partners Sport England and the hiring of architect Sir Michael Hopkins had led the then part-time voluntary committee running the club to lose control of the budget. In 2000 Australian great Shane Warne was signed as the club's overseas player. The 2000 County Championship was to be the last season that Hampshire would play at the County Ground Southampton before they moved in 2001 to the new Rose Bowl ground just outside Southampton. 2001 also saw current club
Shane Warne English and South African batsmen, provided a welcome sight for cricket watchers weary of the relentless intimidation by West Indian bowlers of the 1980s and 1990s. His treatment of South African batsman Daryll Cullinan was such that Cullinan was said to have sought the help of a therapist to overcome Warne's psychological hold. Warne was able to replicate the delivery against Nasser Hussein in a Master Class in an indoor practice centre. Warne combined the ability to turn the ball prodigiously, even on unhelpful pitches, with unerring accuracy and a variation of deliveries (notable among these being the flipper) In