The England & Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has today confirmed that Birmingham’s Edgbaston Stadium has been awarded England’s first Test Match of the Investec Series against the West Indies from Thursday 17 to Monday 21 August in 2017.
Edgbaston already has five prestigious fixtures – including India v Pakistan, England v Australia and a semi-final – confirmed in 2017’s ICC Champions Trophy and will also host NatWest T20 Blast Finals Day for the fifth consecutive year on Saturday 2 September.
Neil Snowball, Chief Executive of Warwickshire County Cricket Club, said: “With 11 days of major match cricket confirmed, next summer will be the biggest programme of games that Edgbaston has ever hosted.
“England have an outstanding record at Edgbaston and we are thrilled to secure the first Test of the Investec Series against the West Indies at an accessible time for supporters in the heart of the summer holidays, with a Thursday start.
“NatWest T20 Blast Finals Day is firmly established in the British sporting calendar and continues to break attendance records each year. We look forward to hosting it for the ninth time in 2017 and hope that the Birmingham Bears can continue their great form of recent seasons by reaching a home final again.”
Emma Gray, Director of Marketing and Communications at Visit Birmingham, the city’s leisure tourism programme, said: “Birmingham has seen a 17% increase in tourists in the last six years – including a record 1.1 million overseas visits in 2015. By continuing to attract the biggest fixtures in cricket, Edgbaston Stadium is helping to raise the city’s profile across the world, ensuring we build on the largest international tourism growth of any UK regional destination.
“Edgbaston is one of Birmingham’s great sporting venues, playing host to some of cricket’s most dramatic moments. We look forward to welcoming fans next year for the city’s biggest summer of major match cricket – and encourage visitors to enjoy our leisure offer while they’re here.”
Further information on tickets for all 2017 major matches at Edgbaston will be released on www.edgbaston.com.
