Cricket Australia reveal the schedule of their 2018/19 home season

Cricket Australia (CA) has announced their bumper international home season for 2018/19 during which they will host South Africa, India, Sri Lanka and New Zealand. Interestingly, the whole summer will clash with the Big Bash League (BBL) which takes place in January every year. The new venue Gold Coast has also been added into the list which will host a Men’s T20 International for the first time as the likes of Perth Stadium and Canberra’s Manuka Oval also will make their Test debuts.

The home summer for Australia will commence with Women’s team locking horns with New Zealand for 3 T20Is and as many ODIs. For Men it will be South Africa to face first who will arrive Down under for 3 One-Day International and a one-off T20I. The series will begin on November 4 and the tour will conclude on the 17th of same month. However, the bumper games of the season will start after that as the much-awaited India’s tour begins on November 21.

India will play 4 Tests

For the first time, India’s tour of Australia will commence with the three-match T20I series which will be followed by 4 Test matches and then 3 ODIs. The two-month long tour will end on January 18 in Melbourne. Virat Kohli will also the traditional Boxing Day Test and New Year Test with MCG and SCG set to host those games respectively. Though the cloud remains over staging of the Day-Night Test match at Adelaide Oval which is expected to begin the summer in whites for Australia on December 6.

James Sutherland, the CEO of Cricket Australia, cleared they are still upbeat over playing Test cricket under lights against India and are hopeful of getting the response from BCCI in the next few weeks. “It is our preference that we play India in a day/night Test match in Adelaide, but we are still working through this detail and hope to have an answer on this in the coming weeks,” he said according to cricket.com.au. Also, the long home season will conclude with the two-match Test series against Sri Lanka in February.

The first Test match against the Asian Tigers will be played under lights and the Gabba will host that game on January 24. “We look forward to giving cricket fans in the nation’s capital the opportunity to see elite cricket in action in the Test format for the first time. It’s a summer which will contain plenty of high-quality cricket, and some exciting new additions to the Australian cricket calendar,” Sutherland added.

Here’s the 2018/19 International schedule:

New Zealand Women’s tour of Australia

First T20: North Sydney Oval, September 29
Second T20: Allan Border Field, Brisbane, October 1
Third T20: Manuka Oval, Canberra, October 5
First ODI: WACA Ground, February 22
Second ODI: Karen Rolton Oval, Adelaide, February 24
Tour match: GG’s XI v NZ, Drummoyne Oval, February 28
Third ODI: Junction Oval, Melbourne, March 3

South Africa Men’s tour of Australia

Tour match: PM’s XI v South Africa, Manuka Oval, Canberra, October 31
First ODI: Perth Stadium, November 4
Second ODI: Adelaide Oval, November 9
Third ODI: Blundstone Arena, Hobart, November 11
Only T20: Metricon Stadium, Gold Coast, November 17

India Men’s tour of Australia

First T20: Gabba, November 21
Second T20: MCG, November 23
Third T20: SCG, November 25
First Test: Adelaide Oval, December 6-10
Second Test: Perth Stadium, December 14-18
Third Test: MCG, December 26-30
Fourth Test: SCG, January 3-7
First ODI: SCG, January 12
Second ODI: Adelaide Oval, January 15
Third ODI: MCG, January 18

Sri Lanka Men’s tour of Australia

First Test: Gabba, January 24-28 (D/N)
Second Test: Manuka Oval, February 1-5

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