New Zealand announce schedule for Feb-Mar 2013 home series against England – Cricket News Update
New Zealand Cricket (NZC), on Thursday announced the schedule for next year’s home series against http://www.senore.com/Cricket/England-c56013, with Auckland getting its first Test in more than six years.
The Black Caps will host England in a full-fledged home series between February 9 and March 26, 2013. The itinerary would kick start with a T20 International between the two outfits at Eden Park, Auckland, on February 9, followed by one T20I at Hamilton
and Wellington each. The T20 series will be followed by three One Day Internationals, at Hamilton, Napier and Auckland.
The Black Caps are also scheduled to play three Test matches against the currently world number one ranked Test side. The three-match series will get underway at Dunedin’s University Oval from March 6, with the second Test commencing at the Basin Reserve
in Wellington, from March 14. The third and final Test will be hosted by Eden Park of Auckland between March 22 and 26. This would be Eden Park’s first Test since March 2006, when it hosted http://www.senore.com/Cricket/New-Zealand-c754-West Indies.
The venue, with a capacity of 50,000, was last year refurbished to host the 2011 Rugby World Cup final. Since then it has been hosting ODIs and T20Is, but is yet to host a five-dayer and the NZC chief executive, David White, feels the England tour is a good
opportunity to bring Test cricket back to Auckland.
"We felt the England tour presented a good opportunity to allocate a match to our largest city," White told media persons on Thursday. “we are sure the people of http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Auckland-c766 will turn out in force to see two quality teams in what promises to be a fantastic
occasion," he added further.
The decision however, deprived Hamilton’s Seddon Park of a Test match for the first time in six years.
The tourists are also scheduled to play two warm-up T20 matches against New Zealand XI prior to the series (at Whangarei on February 4 and 6). A four-day warm-up match between the tourists and New Zealand XI is also scheduled, between the ODI and Test series
at Queenstown from February 27.
England tour of New Zealand itinerary:
February 4: T20 warm-up vs. NZ XI, at Cobham Oval, Whangarei;
February 6: T20 warm-up vs. NZ XI, at Cobham Oval, Whangarei;
February 9: 1st T20I, at Eden Park, Auckland;
February 12: 2nd T20I, at Seddon Park, Hamilton;
February 15: 3rd T20I, at Westpac Stadium, Wellington;
February 17: 1st ODI, at Seddon Park, Hamilton;
February 20: 2nd ODI, at McLean Park, Napier;
February 23: 3rd ODI, at Eden Park, Auckland;
February 27-March 2: - vs. NZ XI, at Queenstown Events Centre;
March 6-10: 1st Test, at University Oval, Dunedin;
March 14-18: 2nd Test, at Basin Reserve, http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Wellington-c864;
March 22-26: 3rd Test, at Eden Park, Auckland.
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