Sri Lanka A will play three one-dayers and two first-class matches against Australia A in the Northern Territory of Darwin, Australia, in July.
According to Australia Cricket, first-class cricket will end a 19-year absence to make its return to the Top End next month, with Australia A confirmed to play a series of matches against Sri Lanka A.
It will be the first time that a senior Australian squad has played first-class cricket in the Northern Territory since 2006, when an Australia A side captained by Brad Haddin and featuring senior stars Shane Watson and Mitchell Johnson played against a Pakistan side captained by Misbah-ul-Haq.
The Australia A squad – which is yet to be named – will play three one-day games against the Sri Lankans, before donning whites to play two four-day first-class matches.
All five matches will be streamed live on cricket.com.au and Kayo Sports.
The first of those four-day games will be played on a drop-in pitch at the Marrara Stadium, the city’s largest venue that can hold about 12,000 spectators.
The ‘A’ series will take on extra significance this year with an Ashes series to be played this summer. While the Darwin matches will coincide with Australia’s second and third Tests against the West Indies in Grenada and Jamaica, an Ashes summer brings heightened selection speculation.
CA’s Head of Cricket Operations and Scheduling, Peter Roach, welcomed the opportunity to play Australia A matches at home in the colder months.
“It’s fantastic to confirm a multi-format series which gives the next crop of emerging cricketers excellent development opportunities throughout the Australian winter,” Roach said in a statement.
“Darwin’s dry season weather between May and September offers both the Northern Territory and Australian Cricket an incredible winter opportunity which allows cricket to be played in Australia all year round.
“Hosting these matches, and especially a match at Marrara Stadium, gives significant status to the series ahead of the 2025-26 international season.”
- Australia A v Sri Lanka A Series Schedule
First one-day match: July 4, Marrara Cricket Ground, 2:30pm AEST (D/N)
Second one-day match: July 6, Marrara Cricket Ground, 10:30am AEST
Third one-day match: July 9, Marrara Cricket Ground, 10:30am AEST
First first-class match: July 13-16, Marrara Stadium, 10:30am AEST
Second-class match: July 20-23, Marrara Cricket Ground, 10:30am AEST (Cricket Australia)