CA to make call on which Northern Territory and Far North Queensland venues will host Bangladesh Tests
Darwin is in the box seat to host its first Test in 22 years with Cricket Australia keen to split next year’s Bangladesh tour between the Territory and North Queensland.
Players are understood to have been impressed with international cricket’s return to Darwin this month, as part of the white-ball series against South Africa.
More winter internationals are scheduled for next year with Australia set to host a two-Test series against Bangladesh in the top end.
Mackay, Cairns, Townsville and Darwin all loom as options to host, which would double as the first winter Tests in Australia since 2004.
But Darwin appears the most likely to secure one of those Tests with Cricket Australia CEO Todd Greenberg keen to spread the series across more than one state.
“Ideally (we will),” Greenberg said. “We want to make sure we continue to play cricket in lots of different locations, so the next generation of kids can see their stars.
“I spent some time with the Chief Minister there and they’ve got a strong appetite for more cricket, as have we, to play more cricket there.
“The conditions up there are amazing when you take out the biggest variable we have in cricket, which is weather, and you have nothing to worry about.”
Darwin last hosted Tests against Bangladesh and Sri Lanka in 2003 and 2004 respectively, before largely falling off the cricket calendar for the past two decades.
Australia A played out two draws in unofficial Tests against Sri Lanka A in the city in July, before this month’s T20s against South Africa at TIO Stadium.
Mackay looms as the more modern regional venue in Queensland with the Great Barrier Reef Arena upgraded in 2023 and having hosted regular WBBL matches.
Players were also buoyed by the wickets in the T20 and ODI against South Africa there this month, which doubled as Australia’s first men’s internationals there.
A Test would be the first in Mackay’s history with Cairns having previously hosted two in the early 2000s before last week’s ODIs in the northernmost city.
Townsville is the other option after hosting ODIs in 2022, but issues such as lighting have seen it drop behind Cairns and Mackay as an option in recent years.
A match at any Queensland venue would also count as the state’s Test for the 2026-27 summer, given the Gabba has missed out on a red-ball match with the touring New Zealand.
CA is open to the idea of more winter internationals in the top end, as a way of extending the season and easing the load on the main part of the summer.
“We had such good support (in the white-ball games), we were sold out in almost every stadium we played in,” Greenberg said.
“Playing on each of the shoulder parts of the season (works).
“Our Australian women’s team will play a Test match in mid-March in Perth this year. International cricket is played 12 months of the year.”
