Cricket
ESPNcricinfo staff 2y

Antigua, Barbados, Grenada to host England Tests in 2022

Cricket

England will play a five-match T20I series in Barbados in January, before competing for the Richards-Botham Trophy across three Tests in Antigua, Barbados and Grenada in March, after Cricket West Indies confirmed the dates for their home internationals in the new year.

England's white-ball squad will arrive in the Caribbean in mid-January, at the same time as the fifth Ashes Test is due to be taking place in Perth, and will play all five of their T20Is in a nine-day period between January 22 and 30, 2022, including two consecutive weekends of back-to-back fixtures.

After a month's break, the focus will then switch to the Test format, with a four-day warm-up at the Coolidge Ground in Antigua, ahead of the first Test at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium, beginning March 8 - an apt venue given that this will be the first time that the newly minted Richards-Botham trophy will be contested, following the retirement of the Wisden Trophy at the end of England's 2-1 series win in 2020.

West Indies secured a memorable 2-1 series win in their last home campaign against England in 2019, the highlight of which was an emphatic 381-run win in the opening Test at the Kensington Oval in Barbados, in which England were bowled out for 77 before Jason Holder starred on his home ground with 202 not out.

Barbados will be the venue for the second Test this time around, from March 16-20, before the series concludes at St George's in Grenada on March 24-28 - a ground where England have played just one previous Test, a nine-wicket victory to square the series on their 2015 tour.

England have won just one Test series in the Caribbean since 1968, when Michael Vaughan's achieved a 3-0 victory in 2004.

The venues for the series are among the most popular for England's travelling fans, with CWI stating that they will be welcoming "fully vaccinated" spectators throughout the tour. Online ticket sales are expected to be available from mid-November.

"We are delighted to be able to confirm the venues for this extended West Indies vs England T20I and Test Series," Johnny Grave, West Indies' CEO, said. "The history and rivalry between the two teams creates great anticipation for fans here in the Caribbean and around the world. These fixtures are part of a bumper year of international home cricket running from January to August in the Caribbean."

"A West Indies vs England home Test Series is the biggest sporting and sports tourism event in the Caribbean. Dating back to 1930 when the first England team visited, these fixtures are steeped in history and a new chapter in this great rivalry will be written, this time with the prize of the new Richards Botham Trophy.

"Celebrating these two heroes of cricket and lifelong friends with the new trophy, staging world-class cricket and hosting thousands of England fans will be a welcome boost for cricket and for the whole region. We are all really looking forward to welcoming fully vaccinated England fans who can not only enjoy some winter sun and Caribbean hospitality but also some world class cricket with both these England Tours, as well as the ICC U19 Cricket World Cup that will also take place in the West Indies in January next year."

T20I Series

1st T20I January 22, Barbados
2nd T20I January 23, Barbados
3rd T20I January 26, Barbados
4th T20I January 29, Barbados
5th T20I January 30, Barbados

Test Series

Warm-up March 1-4, Coolidge Ground, Antigua
1st Test March 8-12, Vivian Richards Cricket Ground, Antigua
2nd Test March 16-20, Kensington Oval, Barbados
3rd Test March 24-28, St George's, Grenada

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