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150th anniversary Ashes Test to be played under lights

The MCG hosted its first day-night Test earlier this year when Australia retained the Women's Ashes.
The MCG hosted its first day-night Test earlier this year when Australia retained the Women's Ashes.William West / AFP
Two years out from the match, Cricket Australia has announced that the one-off Test between Australia and England, to be held at the MCG on March 11, 2027, will be played under lights with a pink ball.

The standalone match was confirmed last year as part of the celebrations to commemorate 150 years of cricketing rivalry between Australia and England, in a similar vein to the one-off centenary match the two sides played at the same venue in 1977. 

With the match beginning on a Thursday during a school term, in what will be the latest men's Test to be held in an Australian season since the late 1970s, Cricket Australia have chosen to stage the match as a day-nighter after the success of the pink ball women's Ashes Test at the MCG earlier this year. 

Cricket Australia hold first rights to the MCG through to the end of March, meaning the ground will be unavailable to host AFL football on the weekend of March 12-14, whilst the Test is also expected to clash with the opening week of the 2027 Indian Premier League.

In a press release, Cricket Australia CEO Todd Greenberg stated: 

"The 150th Anniversary Test at the MCG will be one of the great cricket events and playing under lights will be a fantastic way to celebrate both our game’s rich heritage and Test cricket’s modern evolution. 

It will also help ensure more people are able to attend and watch what will be a fantastic occasion. 

The Centenary Test created many iconic performances including David Hookes’ five consecutive boundaries off Tony Greig, Rick McCosker batting with a broken jaw and Derek Randall’s defiant century, and I’m sure the 150th Test will create its own lifelong memories.  

This season’s Ashes Series will whet the appetite for this clash in exactly two years, and we look forward to celebrating this historic occasion further as it draws nearer.” 

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