The Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) has announced that the Afghanistan men’s cricket team will face New Zealand in a one-off Test match from September 9-13 at the Greater Noida Sports Complex Ground in India. This historic encounter will mark the first time Afghanistan and New Zealand have met in the longest format of the game.
Afghanistan has made significant strides in Test cricket since gaining full membership of the International Cricket Council (ICC) in 2017. They have won three Test matches to date, against Ireland (2019), Bangladesh (2019), and Zimbabwe (2021).
ACB Chairman Mirwais Ashraf expressed his delight at hosting New Zealand for the first time in a Test match. He said, “We are delighted to host a quality New Zealand Test team for the first time in our cricketing history. This is a testament to the hard work we have put in through numerous discussions and meetings with different boards on the sidelines of the various ICC Board Meetings.”
Ashraf also expressed hope for future bilateral white-ball matches against New Zealand. “The Black Caps are an outstanding all-format team in world cricket, and we hope to reach an agreement with New Zealand Cricket for white-ball bilateral matches in the future,” he said.
The match will also mark Afghanistan’s return to international cricket at the Greater Noida Sports Complex Ground, which has been designated as one of the venues for Afghanistan’s home games following an agreement with the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).
New Zealand will arrive in Greater Noida on September 5 for a three-day conditioning camp ahead of the Test match. They will then face India in a three-Test series starting on October 16 in Bengaluru.
Meanwhile, Afghanistan will head to New Delhi in late August for a one-week training and preparation camp. In their two Tests played this year, Afghanistan lost to Sri Lanka and Ireland, with their last win in the longer format coming in 2021 over Zimbabwe in Abu Dhabi.
