Double-headers, a test series against England, the return of the Rose Bowl, and everything on free-to-air TV headline the 2024/25 home international summer of cricket in Aotearoa New Zealand.
The programme starts with the Black Caps’ much-anticipated three-match test series against England before Christmas, ends withhref="https://www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/cricket/white-ferns/" target="_blank"> the White Ferns hosting Australia’s T20I side in late March and in between includes visits from the Australia women’s ODI team, Sri Lanka men and women, and the Pakistan men’s side.
This schedule gives fans potentially 41 days of international cricket in eight different cities, all of which will be broadcast free-to-air and live on TVNZ 1, TVNZ DUKE and TVNZ+.
The Black Caps will fly to Pakistan in February for a tri-series against the hosts and South Africa before starting their ICC Champions Trophy campaign, ahead of returning home for five T20Is and three ODIs against Pakistan in March.
Just three Black Caps tests will be played at home over the summer, opening the schedule against England.
Demand for tickets for the test matches against England at Christchurch, Wellington and Hamilton has been strong, with NZC opting to announce venues for this specific series back in April to assist overseas fans making travel arrangements.
Ticket allocation for seven of the eight pre-sold days to the Australia test series was exhausted, four out of five Pakistan T20Is were sold out, and the Australian men’s T20 series also drew big crowds.
With several short-form games being played around the country’s holiday hot-spots in the New Year’s period, including Mt Maunganui and Nelson, and a Friday night T20I double header at Eden Park in March, interest is expected to remain high.
The White Ferns will play a three-match Rose Bowl ODI series against Australia at the Cello Basin Reserve in the week before Christmas, and will later host a multi-format tour by Sri Lanka in March, immediately ahead of a three-game T20Is series against the No.1 ranked Australians.
Their last five T20Is will be played as double-headers alongside Black Caps-Pakistan T20Is.
The Black Caps have a full schedule of offshore cricket in their immediate future including six tests and a six-match, white-ball tour of Sri Lanka, before returning home for the test series against England.
The White Ferns also continue their busy winter schedule with a three-game T20I series in Australia in mid-September, followed by the ICC T20 World Cup in Bangladesh (September-October) and a multi-format tour of India in the back half of October.
