Afghanistan confirm their one-off Test against New Zealand in Greater Noida
Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) has confirmed the historic one-off Test in New Zealand set to take place at Greater Noida in September. The dates for the Test are September 9-13 as the rising Afghans will head to Delhi for a week-long training and preparation camp ahead of the fixture.
This will be their first Test against the Black Caps after acquiring Test status in 2017 and playing their maiden a year later against India at the Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru.
They have played nine Tests ever since and will be the first time the ACB have hosted the Black Caps in the format. The venue at Greater Noida is among the venues allocated for Afghanistan's home games after the ACB and BCCI reached an agreement.
Addressing the fixture against the Kiwis, Chairman Mirwais Ashraf stated that he hopes the Test against New Zealand acts as a harbinger for regular white-ball bilateral series in the future. He said, as quoted by cricket.af:
"We are delighted to host a quality New Zealand Test team for the first time in our cricketing history. This is a testament to the hard work we have put in through numerous discussions and meetings with different boards on the sidelines of the various ICC Board Meetings.
"The Blackcaps are an outstanding all-format team in world cricket, and we hope to reach an agreement with New Zealand Cricket for white-ball bilateral matches in the future."
The Afghans have won three Tests out of 10, one each against Ireland, Zimbabwe, and Bangladesh.
New Zealand were beaten by Afghanistan at the T20 World Cup
New Zealand will be wary of Afghanistan despite the former possessing tons of experience in the format. The Kiwis suffered a crushing 84-run loss to Rashid Khan's side at the T20 World Cup 2024, which will ensure they do not take their opposition lightly.
With the surface likely to be spinning one, Aghanistan will fancy their chances of beating New Zealand.