Pakistan to play ODI series against England in 2019

LONDON: Pakistan will play five One-Day Internationals and a T20I against England in England next year before the World Cup.

According to a scheduled announced by ECB on Wednesday, Pakistan will be England’s first opponents of the home international season next year with the tour featuring five One-Day Internationals and a T20I as both countries prepare for the ICC World Cup which starts on May 30, 2019.

Pakistan will start the England tour with a Twenty20 International on May 5, 2019, which will be played at Sophia Gardens, Cardiff.The T20I will be followed by five One-Dayers to be played between May 8 and 19.

The opening match of the five-match ODI series will be played on May 8 at The Oval, followed by the 2nd ODI at Ageas Bowl, Southampton on May 11, 3rd ODI at Bristol on May 14, 4th ODI at Trent Bridge, Nottingham on May 17, and the final ODI at Headingley, Leeds on May 19.

The series will provide Pakistan with an opportunity to gel with conditions in the United Kingdom ahead of the World Cup. — Geo NewsAFP adds: England’s historic first Test match against Ireland will be played at Lord’s next July.

Ireland made their Test debut against Pakistan at Malahide in May and in 2019 they will head to London for a four-day match against England at the home of cricket from July 24-27.It will be the first ever meeting between the two local rivals in the game’s longest format. The clash is the precursor to next year’s Ashes series between England and Australia, which begins at Edgbaston on August 1.

Lord’s hosts the second Ashes Test followed by Headingley, Old Trafford and the Oval.ECB Chief Executive Tom Harrison said: “We fully supported the ICC’s decision to award full membership to Cricket Ireland and we expect next summer’s inaugural Test match at Lord’s against our neighbours to be an historic celebration for all Irish cricket fans.

“It will also provide excellent Ashes preparation for England against an Irish team whose impressive performance against Pakistan earlier this year showed they can compete strongly in this form of the game.”