eBusiness Weekly
The dates and venues for England’s three-match Test tour of New Zealand were confirmed on Tuesday; Christchurch hosts the opener from November 28-December 2, Wellington follows from December 6-10, before the series concludes in Hamilton from December 14-18
The release of the itinerary for England’s Test tour of New Zealand later this year has confirmed Ben Stokes’ side will play matches in Christchurch, Wellington and Hamilton.
Hagley Oval, the Cello Basin Reserve, and Seddon Park were on Tuesday confirmed as the venues for the three-match series.
Christchurch hosts the opening match from November 28-December 2, Wellington follows from December 6-10, before the series concludes in Hamilton from December 14-18.
New Zealand Cricket chief executive Scott Weenink said there were already indications that the three matches against Brendon McCullum’s team would attract the same sort of bumper attendances witnessed for the two home tests against Australia in February and March.
“In the past, there’s often been a lot of talk in New Zealand about the popularity of Test cricket – without that translating into ticket sales or viewership numbers,” he said.
“The difference over the past summer, and in terms of the upcoming tests against England, is that the interest is being converted to bums on seats and is driving record viewership numbers.”
England host West Indies in July before Sri Lanka visit across August and September during a summer where attention may be more focused on limited-overs cricket.
The T20 World Cup takes place in the West Indies and United States in June, while England also have a five-match ODI series against Australia in September.
England are currently last in the World Test Championship table following a 4-1 series defeat to India at the start of the year.
Having won just three of their 10 matches since the 2023-25 edition of the competition began, England require a major turnaround to have a chance of reaching next year’s final at Lord’s. — skysports
