Dharamsala, Ranchi among six venues to host Test match for first time

Six venues, including Dharamsala and Ranchi, will host five-day matches for the first time during a packed home season for the Indian cricket team, beginning with the New Zealand series in September.

A busy international schedule awaits the Indian team in the coming home season. They’ll play 13 Test matches, eight ODIs and three T20s.

Rajkot, Vizag, Pune, Dharamsala, Ranchi and Indore, upgraded as Test centres in November last year, will host five-day matches for the first time, BCCI secretary Ajay Shirke said in a statement.

The new centres would also host Tests this season against the visiting New Zealand, England, Australia and Bangladesh, the BCCI announced after the meeting of its Tour Programmes and Fixtures Committee on Thursday.

The home season will start with three Test matches and five ODIs against New Zealand, followed by five Test matches, three ODIs and as many T20Is against England. Australia are to visit India in February-March, 2017 to play four Test matches while Bangladesh is slated to play a one-off Test match in India for the first time since the country got Test status.

The three Tests against New Zealand would be played at Indore, Kanpur and Kolkata. Dharamsala, Delhi, Mohali, Ranchi and Vizag will host the five ODIs against the Kiwis.

Five Test matches against England would be held at Mohali, Rajkot, Mumbai, Vizag and Chennai, with the ODIs to be held at Pune, Cuttack and Kolkata. The three T20 games are scheduled at Bengaluru, Nagpur and Kanpur.

Australia will tour India in February, 2017 to play four Test matches, to be played at Bengaluru, Dharamsala, Ranchi and Pune while Hyderabad would be the venue for the stand-alone Test match against Bangladesh.