Lord's set as the venue when Ireland and England square off in a Test match

In a historic first, England is all set to host Ireland for a four-day Test match at Lord’s next summer after the culmination of the ICC cricket world cup. The one-off series will be a preparatory fixture for the Three Lions ahead of the 2019 Ashes. The five-Test Ashes series is slated to begin on August 1 at Edgbaston, with matches following at Lord’s, Headingley, Old Trafford and the Oval after the Ireland Test at Lord’s on 24 July.

Lord’s will be the home of cricket in the summer of 2019 with the World Cup final scheduled for 14 July at the same venue. England will warm up for the tournament with a T20 and five ODIs against Pakistan from 5 May to 19 May.

Speaking about the developments, ECB chief executive Tom Harrison said, “Next summer’s schedule – with a Cricket World Cup and an Ashes Series at its heart is truly a season to savour for cricket fans of all ages, nationalities, and cultures. It is a once-in-a-generation opportunity for us to build an even bigger following for all formats of the game.”

The Test will be beneficial for both the teams

For Ireland, it provides the associate nation with another chance to show their credentials since they were elevated to the top table last year.  The Irish gave Pakistan a scare during their inaugural Test in Malahide before succumbing to a five-wicket defeat.

On the other hand, England will be able to give their all-format players vital exposure to the red ball cricket before taking on Australia. Their first half of the summer will be dominated by limited-overs fixtures; the World Cup, which is preceded by a five-match one-day series at home to Pakistan.

Also, the added element of Ashes 2019 being England’s curtain-raiser in the new World Test Championship, the one-off Test will hold much importance to the players as they will be eager to perform and get on the song.

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