Edgbaston set for biggest ever summer as ground awarded Windies test

WHILE yet to stage its Test Match for this summer, Edgbaston has been informed by the England & Wales Cricket Board that it has been awarded a high profile five-day game for next summer.

Edgbaston already has a series of prestigious fixtures in place for next summer’s ICC Champions Trophy – including India v Pakistan, England v Australia and a semi-final. It will also host – as it does this season – the NatWest T20 Blast Finals Day. It will be the fifth consecutive year the ground has staged the domestic season’s showpiece event.

The ground has now been informed by the ECB that the Birmingham stadium will stage the first Test Match between England and the West Indies – which takes place between August 17 and 21.

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.”