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Heading into the first Test of the summer between Australia and South Africa at the WACA, there was a bit of conjecture about the future of international cricket at the iconic ground. So, we’ve decided to clear that up.
With the new Perth Stadium being built just across the Swan River from the WACA in Burswood, there had been some speculation that the South Africa Test could be the last match of its kind played at the ground.
That, however, is not the case.
Here are the answers to all the main questions about the future of cricket at the WACA.
We’re not sure yet. If Perth Stadium is completed in time, it will host the blockbuster Test. If not, the WACA will be the venue for the third Test between Australia and England.
At the moment, it’s too early to make the call on whether Perth Stadium will be ready to go for the Ashes Test. As of the end of October construction was 63 per cent complete, having started in December 2014.
Given the Test will be played in early December, 2017, there is a chance the new stadium will be ready. It’s a bit of a long shot, though, and the stadium’s website currently says it will be open for the start of the 2018 AFL season.
As it stands, we’d put our money on the WACA hosting the Test. But really, it’s still too early to say for certain.
Essentially, the ones which will attract a crowd larger than 15,000 people.
In more detail, each international match between Australia and a ‘top-tier’ nation – any one of England, India and South Africa – and all Perth Scorchers home games in the Big Bash will be played at the stadium in Burswood.
Every other international will still be played at the WACA, which, under the Western Australian Cricket Association’s ‘Vision 2030’, will be redeveloped into a boutique 15,000-capacity stadium.
All state cricket will also remain at the WACA.
However, a spokesperson for the WACA told us that there is scope for nations to change their tier; that is, if a side like New Zealand or Sri Lanka start drawing massive crowds, their games against Australia in Perth can be shifted to the new stadium.
That means we could, in theory, see more and more cricket played at Perth Stadium at the expense of the WACA. However, given the low spectator numbers which were seen during last summer’s series against New Zealand and the West Indies, that’s pretty unlikely to happen.
One thing to note is the amount of cricket Australia plays against ‘top-tier’ nations compared to lower-tier ones.
As an indication, Australia will host 35 cricket matches between August 2017 and February 2019. Of those, just ten are against lower-tier nations; there will be two Tests and three ODIs against both Bangladesh (August 2017) and Sri Lanka (January/February 2019).
Using that as a guide, it means only 30-40 per cent of international matches in Australia will be eligible to be played at the WACA, which isn’t ideal for fans of the ground.
However, it should be stressed that, while it looks like there will be a lot less cricket at the ground, the WACA will still continue to host matches well into the foreseeable future.