London: Australia’s limited-overs tour of England – comprising three T20Is and three ODIs – will take place in September, the England & Wales Cricket Board (ECB) confirmed on Friday.
The series was initially scheduled to be held in July, but it was postponed due to the spread of coronavirus all over the world.
With England successfully hosting West Indies, Ireland and now Pakistan, the two boards decided to have the series in September.
All six matches of the both the series will be played in a bio-secure bubble. The T20Is will be played on September 4, 6, and 8 in Southampton and the teams will then travel to Manchester for the ODIs, which is on September 11,13, and 16.
“We owe a significant debt of gratitude to the players, staff and administrators of Cricket Australia for their efforts in getting this tour underway. Their co-operation to ensure these matches are staged is crucial to cricket in this country. It will also provide much-needed financial aid at all levels of cricket in England and Wales as we work through the challenges in front of us,” ECB CEO Tom Harrison said.
Australia’s squad is expected to reach the England on August 24 and will be kept in quarantine.
Meanwhile, Australia head coach Justin Langer lauded the physical condition in which the players have returned following such a lengthy hiatus.
”It’s vital for cricket that we do everything we can to keep the game going in these tough times. I am delighted with how the players have returned to their states from the break back in March,” Langer said.
”The whole squad has come back fitter and stronger, which is a great testament to each of them. We have a massive assignment ahead with World Cups, Test series against India and South Africa and the Ashes next year. We can’t wait to get back into it again,” he added.
Along with the confirmation of the tour, Cricket Australia also announced a 21-man squad, which includes the uncapped trio of Daniel Sams, Riley Meredith and Josh Philippe.
Australia’s T20 and ODI squad: Aaron Finch (c), Sean Abbott, Ashton Agar, Alex Carey, Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Mitchell Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Riley Meredith, Josh Philippe, Daniel Sams, Kane Richardson, Steven Smith, Mitchell Starc, Marcus Stoinis, Andrew Tye, Matthew Wade, David Warner, Adam Zampa