New Zealand to play Test match against Afghanistan in Greater Noida, check schedule here
AFG vs NZ Test Cricket: In their two Test matches played this year, Afghanistan lost to Sri Lanka and Ireland. Their last win came against Zimbabwe in Abu Dhabi in 2021.
The Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) on Saturday confirmed that their men’s team will play a one-off Test match against New Zealand in Greater Noida from September 9 to 13. This will be the first time that Afghanistan will play a Test match against New Zealand, the team’s third match in the longer format this year. Afghanistan have previously won one Test match each against Ireland (2019), Bangladesh (2019) and Zimbabwe (2021).
ACB Chairman Mirwaiz Ashraf said, “We are delighted to host a quality New Zealand Test team for the first time in our cricket history. This is a testimony to the hard work that we have put in through multiple discussions and meetings with various boards on the sidelines of various ICC Board Meetings. The Black Caps are an outstanding all-format team in world cricket, and we hope we will reach an agreement with New Zealand Cricket for white-ball bilateral matches in the future.”
The game will also mark the return of Afghanistan to playing international cricket at the Greater Noida Sports Complex Ground, which is one of the venues allotted for Afghanistan's home matches subsequent to a mutual agreement between the ACB and BCCI. New Zealand are slated to arrive in Greater Noida on September 5 for a three-day conditioning camp ahead of the one-off Test match. There are also three Tests against the Kiwis scheduled, starting from Bengaluru on October 16 and then moving to Pune and finally to Mumbai.
Meanwhile, Afghanistan will travel to New Delhi towards the end of August for a week-long training and preparation camp. In their two Tests played this year, Afghanistan have suffered defeats against Sri Lanka and Ireland with their last win in the game's longest format coming over Zimbabwe in Abu Dhabi in 2021.
