Cricket Australia have announced the international summer of cricket fixtures for 2019-20, with a day-night Test in Western Australia, an ODI series in March and three teams touring across the course of the summer all points of note.
Despite Australia’s desire to avoid it, a limited-overs tour to India appears all but certain to be scheduled in January with today’s announcement, meaning there will be no international cricket played down under between the end of the New Year’s Test and late March.
It also all but confirms that Australia’s best white ball cricketers will be yanked out of the Big Bash League during the second half of January.
With a two-Test series to Bangladesh and a tour of South Africa to follow during February and early March, there was no chance to schedule the New Zealand ODI matches before the middle of March.
» Full Australian cricket fixtures, future tours programme
By that stage of the year, most drop-in wickets will have been removed, meaning Cricket Australia have had to schedule the first two ODI matches in Sydney, before attention shifts to Hobart, who get their first and only match of the summer featuring Australia.
That means New Zealand’s tour gets split into two parts, with their first Test set to be played in Perth as a day-night encounter, meaning a 4pm start in Sydney and Melbourne, and an even later 6pm start in New Zealand.
The Black Caps will then stick around for the Boxing Day and New Year’s Test in Melbourne and Sydney respectively.
Before Australia play New Zealand, they will host Pakistan in the first two Tests of the summer in Brisbane, which regains the opening match, and Adelaide in a day-night encounter.
Pakistan will also play three T20s before their Test series, while the first men’s matches of the summer will take the form of three T20s against Sri Lanka, to be played in Adelaide, Brisbane and Melbourne from Sunday, October 27.
On the women’s side of the coin, apart from the T20 World Cup, which will be played in late February and early March, they will commence the summer with three ODIs and three T20s against Sri Lanka.
T20 cricket will be the main course for the Southern Stars this summer ahead of the World Cup, with the WBBL set to end in late January and be followed by a T20 tri-series against England and India, with all matches to be played in Canberra, and at the Junction Oval in Melbourne.
All domestic fixtures are set to be announced by Cricket Australia at a later date. They are set to include a revamped one-day cup, and a new BBL finals series.
T20 series vs Sri Lanka
| Match | Date | Time | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st T20 | Sun Oct 27 | 2:30pm | Adelaide Oval |
| 2nd T20 | Wed Oct 30 | 7:10pm | Gabba, Brisbane |
| 3rd T20 | Fri Nov 1 | 7:10pm | Melbourne Cricket Ground |
T20 series vs Pakistan
| Match | Date | Time | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st T20 | Sun Nov 3 | 2:30pm | Sydney Cricket Ground |
| 2nd T20 | Tue Nov 5 | 7:10pm | Manuka Oval, Canberra |
| 3rd T20 | Fri Nov 8 | 7:30pm | Optus Stadium, Perth |
Test series vs Pakistan
| Match | Date | Time | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st Test | Thu Nov 21 – Mon Nov 26 | 11am | Gabba, Brisbane |
| 2nd Test (D/N) | Fri Nov 29 – Tue Dec 3 | 2:30pm | Adelaide Oval |
Test series vs New Zealand
| Match | Date | Time | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st Test (D/N) | Thu Dec 12 – Mon Dec 16 | 4pm | Optus Stadium, Perth |
| 2nd Test | Thu Dec 26 – Mon Dec 30 | 10:30am | Melbourne Cricket Ground |
| 3rd Test | Fri Jan 3 – Tue Jan 7 | 10:30am | Sydney Cricket Ground |
ODI series vs New Zealand
| Match | Date | Time | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st ODI | Fri Mar 13 | 2:30pm | Sydney Cricket Ground |
| 2nd ODI | Sun Mar 15 | 10:30am | Sydney Cricket Ground |
| 3rd ODI | Fri Mar 20 | 2:30pm | Blundstone Arena, Hobart |
Limited overs fixtures vs Sri Lanka
| Match | Date | Time | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st T20 | Sun Sep 29 | 2:30pm | North Sydney Oval |
| 2nd T20 | Mon Sep 30 | 7pm | North Sydney Oval |
| 3rd T20 | Wed Oct 2 | 2pm | North Sydney Oval |
| 1st ODI | Sat Oct 5 | 11am | Allan Border Field, Brisbane |
| 2nd ODI | Mon Oct 7 | 11am | Allan Border Field, Brisbane |
| 3rd ODI | Wed Oct 9 | 11am | Allan Border Field, Brisbane |
T20 tri-series vs India and England
| Match | Date | Time | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| India vs England | Fri Jan 31 | 2:10pm | Manuka Oval, Canberra |
| Australia vs England | Sat Feb 1 | 2:10pm | Manuka Oval, Canberra |
| Australia vs India | Sun Feb 2 | 2:10pm | Manuka Oval, Canberra |
| India vs England | Fri Feb 7 | 2:10pm | Junction Oval, Melbourne |
| Australia vs India | Sat Feb 8 | 2:10pm | Junction Oval, Melbourne |
| Australia vs England | Sun Feb 9 | 2:10pm | Junction Oval, Melbourne |
| Final | Wed Feb 12 | 1:40pm | Junction Oval, Melbourne |
All times given are in AEDT (Sydney/Melbourne daylight savings time).
Sgt Pepperoni
Roar Rookie
Hopefully we get to see this in the form of the WI or some other lower tier nation, even if just for a single generation of players in a champion team I suppose you could argue that the WI t20 team has reached those heights several yrs ago but then that wasnt matched in the test and ODI arena
IAP
Guest
This looks like another nothing summer filled with nothing games that mean nothing. The BCCI is again controlling what goes on in cricket to the detriment of everyone else.
Zavjalova
Roar Rookie
Gabba tests should always be D/N so the crowds turn up. And a D/N test in Perth? I need to be in bed by 10:30. My gawd... what is wrong with these people?
Marcus
Guest
For me having no ODIs isn’t necessarily a bad thing, since they have been taken off free to air... who really cares about them. CA has told me I need to have Foxtel to follow them, I don’t have it, so I don’t follow. Means the best players can join the big bash for once, which I can watch.
mds1970
Roar Guru
The least amount of international cricket since the World Series split; with none at all between the SCG Test and mid-March. Suddenly we see why the Big Bash is expanded to a double round-robin. There's a massive hole in the program to fill.
Paul
Roar Guru
Sorry JayG, but cricket is not non-stop. Players can schedule when they'll play what tournaments but there are some games or events that should be considered "musts". Obviously the World Cups and the Ashes fit that category, but so should games against emerging Test nations. They don't happen very often but are hugely important for the new country. This is not so much about the game itself, but is welcoming a new team into international cricket which, in theory, makes them an equal partner with all other Test playing nations. Why demean the occasion by not sending your best available team? If guys are genuinely injured, fair enough, but playing cricket somewhere else or sitting around in India having a few beers with mates?
Paul
Roar Guru
Again though Sgt, there's a difference in the commercialism, with players being auctioned off as individuals ( I always think of slave trading when I hear that term used), so we have Board controlled events coupled with Board sanctioned events where a player can make what he or she is apparently worth. I keep hoping for the rise of another great West Indian team and now even more so, to test my theory about power versus your ideas about commercialism. No argument, money's a huge factor but I don't think a champion team from a poor country can be ignored either.
Paul
Roar Guru
All of the factors that you mentioned were in play for sure, Peter, especially colour TV. Packer was obviously a businessman and you're right, he knew the cricket board at that time were sitting on a huge golden egg. I lived in Sydney then and Packer didn't rate a mention - then. The standout was the Board, who either said nothing when the players you mentioned retired or, in the case of Ian Redpath who made it clear he HAD to quit as he couldn't afford to play for Australia. the Board very arrogantly said something like "money shouldn't matter, you should do it for the honour & privilege of playing for your country". In hindsight. there was no way WSC could not have happened. People thought Packer was mad to toss away so much money to the players but his company must have made that back 50 times over the past 40 years
VivGilchrist
Roar Rookie
Send them to bed earlier when the cricket is on.
Arnab Bhattacharya
Roar Guru
I hope so. If CA really do priorotise test cricket, they need to host and play against the lower ranked nations more often rather than t20 games. Was looking forward to flying up north to back my boys. If things go right in the t20 qualifiers, we should get 2 games in the t20 wc in Sydney next year. Fingers crossed that goes well
Alicesprings
Guest
There’s increasing talk the SCG are seriously considering a drop in. The upcoming summer will only increase the pressure to fold to the AFL demands - two weeks from the last ball to the first bounce!
dungerBob
Roar Rookie
Yeah, that was rude and just a bit arrogant of CA. Here's a link if anyone has an inclination to see what they did. https://www.news.com.au/sport/cricket/cricket-australia-accused-of-disrespectful-snub/news-story/84e01fbd946cb0955b5d6fd8966e2591 Arnab, we've had a spring clean at the top since then so hopefully things will get a bit better in that department.
JayG
Roar Rookie
But in this day and age of non-stop cricket, Boards do manage the workload of players without other boards considering it an insult. The Aussie quicks were rested for the ODI series against India after the Tests. Bumrah was rested for the entire series India had against NZ. Kohli himself was rested for the latter part of the series.
Sgt Pepperoni
Roar Rookie
Well exactly. As previously mentioned Money money money Forget player welfare, crowd interests, supporting developing cricketing nations. Just get those dollars
Arnab Bhattacharya
Roar Guru
This is karma coming to bite back. The comment section sees fans being frustrated at BCCI's control over world cricket. While this is true to an extent, the BCCI are following the FTP (Future Tours Programme). Something Cricket Australia did not do with the disrespect they had shown by cancelling Bangladesh's tour down under last year. The fact that broadcasters could overrule the FTP was disgraceful and outright disgusting We sucked it up and got on with it. Time CA, the players, fans and broadcasters do as well.
Scott Pryde
Expert
That's the last thing on Cricket Australia's mind is to disrupt the NRL season. They are doing it out of necessity, thanks to the BCCI. The last thing they want to do is play home cricket in March.
Gyfox
Roar Rookie
Seems that the ODI in March is designed to muck up the NRL season. Sooner the SCG gets a drop-in pitch, the better!
Paul
Roar Guru
Kohli would have played county cricket Brian, but he was injured. Resting players because they're playing Afghanistan, in their first Test, was never okay. It demeans both the opposition and Test cricket. Australia tried the same stunt when it played Zimbabwe the first time and got hammered by the public.
Peter Warrington
Guest
I don't think there was any coincidence that the first World Cup happened not long before WSC. and in the interim, Benaud managed the Wanderers who went to SA, with Chappelli, G Chappell and Lillee all involved. players taking more control over their destiny. colour TV also should not be underestimated. 1975. the windies have a great team and Australia have 5-6 stars. perhaps the catalyst came when chappelli retired. at 32. Mallett 30. building on Sheahan at 27. Cowper at 28. the game had been bleeding elite senior players and the board didn't act. meanwhile, the game was going crazy. stadia were pretty full. many people had fond memories of the world XI tour in 71-2. the stars align and Packer sees the opportunities that the starchy board don't.
Brian
Guest
Except Kohli still rested the week they played Afghanistan. It is one thing to rest players, another alltogether to have those same players playing in the BBL and clearly not resting