Darwin is on track to host its first Test in 22 years, with Cricket Australia (CA) considering splitting next year’s Bangladesh tour between the Northern Territory and North Queensland.
Players reportedly enjoyed the return of international cricket to Darwin earlier this month, when the city staged white-ball matches against South Africa. Now, CA is preparing for more winter internationals, with Australia set to host Bangladesh in a two-Test series forming part of the World Test Championship (WTC) in the Top End.
Darwin Emerges as Leading Candidate
Mackay, Cairns, Townsville, and Darwin are all under consideration, but Darwin is currently the frontrunner. Cricket Australia CEO Todd Greenberg highlighted the importance of spreading the game to different parts of the country.
“𝑾𝒆 𝒘𝒂𝒏𝒕 𝒕𝒐 𝒎𝒂𝒌𝒆 𝒔𝒖𝒓𝒆 𝒘𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒖𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒚 𝒄𝒓𝒊𝒄𝒌𝒆𝒕 𝒊𝒏 𝒍𝒐𝒕𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝒅𝒊𝒇𝒇𝒆𝒓𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝒍𝒐𝒄𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔, 𝒔𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒏𝒆𝒙𝒕 𝒈𝒆𝒏𝒆𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒐𝒇 𝒌𝒊𝒅𝒔 𝒄𝒂𝒏 𝒔𝒆𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒊𝒓 𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒓𝒔,” 𝑮𝒓𝒆𝒆𝒏𝒃𝒆𝒓𝒈 𝒆𝒙𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒊𝒏𝒆𝒅.“𝑾𝒆 𝒘𝒂𝒏𝒕 𝒕𝒐 𝒎𝒂𝒌𝒆 𝒔𝒖𝒓𝒆 𝒘𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒖𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒚 𝒄𝒓𝒊𝒄𝒌𝒆𝒕 𝒊𝒏 𝒍𝒐𝒕𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝒅𝒊𝒇𝒇𝒆𝒓𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝒍𝒐𝒄𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔, 𝒔𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒏𝒆𝒙𝒕 𝒈𝒆𝒏𝒆𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒐𝒇 𝒌𝒊𝒅𝒔 𝒄𝒂𝒏 𝒔𝒆𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒊𝒓 𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒓𝒔,” 𝑮𝒓𝒆𝒆𝒏𝒃𝒆𝒓𝒈 𝒆𝒙𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒊𝒏𝒆𝒅.
He added that local authorities are eager to host more matches and that weather conditions in Darwin are favorable compared to other regions.
Why the Schedule Changed
The Bangladesh Tests were initially penciled in for March 2027. However, the 150th-anniversary Ashes Test at the MCG forced a reshuffle, moving the Bangladesh series forward. Meanwhile, Afghanistan’s scheduled one-off Test and three T20Is against Australia were suspended after CA halted bilateral cricket ties with them.
Darwin last staged Test matches in 2003 and 2004, against Bangladesh and Sri Lanka respectively, before fading from the international calendar. More recently, the city hosted Australia A matches and the recent T20Is against South Africa at TIO Stadium.
Regional Venues in Consideration
Mackay has strengthened its case with the upgraded Great Barrier Reef Arena, which successfully staged WBBL matches and men’s internationals this year. Cairns, which hosted two Tests in the early 2000s and last week’s ODIs, remains an option, while Townsville’s chances have dipped due to lighting concerns.
A Test match in Queensland—whether in Mackay, Cairns, or Townsville—would also count as the state’s allocation for the 2026-27 summer, since the Gabba will not host a red-ball fixture against New Zealand.
More Winter Cricket on the Horizon
Cricket Australia sees value in expanding winter internationals in the Top End, extending the cricket calendar and reducing pressure on the traditional summer window.
“𝑾𝒆 𝒉𝒂𝒅 𝒔𝒖𝒄𝒉 𝒈𝒐𝒐𝒅 𝒔𝒖𝒑𝒑𝒐𝒓𝒕 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒉𝒊𝒕𝒆-𝒃𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒈𝒂𝒎𝒆𝒔, 𝒘𝒆 𝒘𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒔𝒐𝒍𝒅 𝒐𝒖𝒕 𝒊𝒏 𝒂𝒍𝒎𝒐𝒔𝒕 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒚 𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒅𝒊𝒖𝒎 𝒘𝒆 𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒚𝒆𝒅 𝒊𝒏,” 𝑮𝒓𝒆𝒆𝒏𝒃𝒆𝒓𝒈 𝒔𝒂𝒊𝒅.
With Australia’s women’s team already set to play a Test in March, CA believes year-round international cricket is becoming the new normal.
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