Cricket: Windies set for Cobham Oval

West Indies batsman Chris Gayle in action against New Zealand during their ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 quarter-final played at the Wellington Regional Stadium. Photo / Mark Mitchell

International cricket is returning to Whangarei's Cobham Oval in 2017 when the West Indies play the Black Caps in a 50-over match.

The exact date of the one-day international is yet to be set, but the game has been announced as part of the Black Caps' 2017/18 home schedule. The West Indies arrive in November 2017.

The Whangarei match - which could feature Northland Black Cap Tim Southee - will be the first of a five-match series played across Whangarei, Christchurch and Mt Maunganui.

Northland's Tim Southee may have the rare opportunity of playing a one-day international on his home ground next year. Photo / NZME

Form, sporting political ructions and the lure of the lucrative Twenty20 Indian Premier League has led to the West Indies struggling in recent years in the game's test format.

However, they have excelled in the shorter forms of the game, exciting crowds in the 2015 Cricket World Cup and winning the T20 World Cup in India this year.

Players to watch out for include the 1.93m allrounder Carlos Brathwaite, who struck four consecutive sixes off New Zealand-born England allrounder Ben Stokes in this year's T20 World Cup final, to win the match for West Indies.

The squad is currently captained by 23-year-old Jason Holder, and also includes IPL stars Marlon Samuels, Andre Russell, and Darren Bravo.

The West Indies will arrive in November 2017 for three tests, five ODIs and one T20I, before a clash in the shorter formats against Pakistan with three T20Is and five ODIs.

Australia then arrive for their third straight year of the Chappell-Hadlee rivalry, followed by England for five ODIs and two tests.

The first test against England will mark the return of test cricket to Eden Park, which last saw the five-day game in 2014 against India. The plan is for this to be played as a day/night test, pending agreement and approval.

NZC chief executive David White was pleased with the outcome of the schedule.

"The last couple of years has seen a significant rise in interest in cricket and I think the schedule we've locked in will help that interest continue to grow," said White. "We're really pleased how much of the country we've been able to cover with the schedule, with a strong North and South Island split."

The Whangarei ODI will be the first time international cricket has been played at Cobham Oval since India played a two-day match against a New Zealand XI in February 2014.