Photo Credit: Sri Lanka Cricket
Sri Lanka host Pakistan for two Test matches in June next year in what will be their first series of the International Cricket Council (ICC) Men’s Future Tours Programme (FTP) for the period 2023-27 that was confirmed today.
The announcement of the FTP, a result of a collective effort of Full Members with ICC’s support, ensures certainty of cricket fixtures with the confirmation of all bilateral series across the three formats. The exact dates and venues of the series are for the Members to announce in due course.
Sri Lanka, who have committed to playing all other Full Members during the FTP cycle, host Afghanistan for one Test and three T20Is next year while they have packed mid-2024 that sees them play two Tests in England and two Tests at home against New Zealand, both part of the third edition of the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) that runs from 2023-25.
Sri Lanka host Australia in early 2025 for two Tests that will also be part of the third WTC while India visit Sri Lanka for a Test series in August 2026 for WTC series of the following cycle (2025-27), during which they also play in Pakistan three months later.
WTC Series: Sri Lanka play Australia, New Zealand and Pakistan at home in the 2023-25 WTC while playing Australia, England and Pakistan away. In the 2025-27 WTC, they play Bangladesh, India and South Africa at home. They will play in Bangladesh, India and New Zealand in away series.
The announcement of the Men’s FTP comes a day after the first ever Women’s FTP was announced.
ICC GM of Cricket Wasim Khan said: “I’d like to thank our Members for the effort that has gone into creating this FTP for the next four years. We are incredibly lucky to have three vibrant formats of the game, with an outstanding programme of ICC global events and strong bilateral and domestic cricket and this FTP is designed to allow all cricket to flourish.
“The landscape around the game is continuing to evolve and we will work closely with Members as we collectively adapt to that. We are committed to growing the game and giving more fans more opportunities to enjoy cricket, but are very mindful of the need to balance that ambition with the welfare of players.”
Sri Lanka Cricket Chief Executive Officer Sri Lanka expressed satisfaction at his team’s fixtures in the new FTP.
Sri Lanka CEO Ashley de Silva: “Sri Lanka Cricket is extremely pleased with the new ICC FTP Cycle of 2023– 27, which has been carefully designed to cater to the exponential growth experienced in all-formats of the game. We are happy with the number of bilateral series that our team is scheduled to play during the upcoming cycle that will cover Test, ODI and T20I formats of the game.
‘’The specialty of the FTP is that the majority of the Test matches are tied to the ICC World Test Championship, and this gives meaning for each tour, game, and member countries engaged in bilateral cricket.”
- A media release on the complete men’s FTP, an earlier media release on the women’s FTP, graphics and schedules are available in the Online Media Zone
