NatWest Series

The NatWest Series is the name used for One Day International cricket tournaments held in England since 2000. The tournaments are sponsored by the National Westminster Bank.

The original format of the NatWest Series was a three-team triangular tournament, involving England and two visiting international sides. Each of the three teams would play the other two three times each, after which the two top teams would face each other in a final at Lord's in London. The ten matches would be played at the seven international grounds (Lord's, Edgbaston, Headingley, Old Trafford, The Oval, Trent Bridge and the Riverside Ground), as well as other county cricket grounds such as the St Lawrence Ground (Canterbury), Sophia Gardens (Cardiff), the Rose Bowl (Southampton) and at Bristol.

The first NatWest Series was held in 2000 a year after England hosted the World Cup. The West Indies and Zimbabwe were the two visiting teams, with England and Zimbabwe contesting the first final. England won by 6 wickets, with Darren Gough taking 3–20 and Alec Stewart scoring 97.

It used to be a common occurrence at the end of cricket Test matches for the crowd to invade the pitch to watch the presentation from the pavilion balcony. In the UK this tradition ended in 2001 Natwest Series after a steward was injured in a pitch invasion at a one-day match between England and Pakistan. Invading the pitch can now warrant a £1,000 fine, and post-match presentations are held on the field. During the presentation ceremony at the 2001 NatWest Series final on the balcony at Lord's, Michael Bevan was hit in the face with a beer can thrown from the crowd.

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