England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) announced the 2027 home schedule for England’s men’s and women’s teams. Here are the major talking points from the schedule.
England’s home summer will see three Ashes series being played next year - men’s, women’s and men’s mixed disability teams. Apart from the Ashes, the men’s team will also play a one-off Test against Bangladesh, 10 ODIs and three T20Is. The women’s team will host Bangladesh for three T20Is and as many ODIs as well.
No major IPL clash for availability issues
England’s home summer will get underway next year with the ODI series against Pakistan on May 15. But there might not be a major clash with the Indian Premier League, with the tournament likely to end by May 15 as well, allowing players featuring in the IPL playoffs to potentially make themselves available for selection from the second or third game of the series. On the flip side, if the ECB decide to call on England players earlier for the series, they will probably miss the playoffs.
BCCI Secretary Devajit Saikia revealed last month that there are plans for the league to start and end early to avoid extreme weather conditions in different parts of the country. He asserted that an effort will be made to start the IPL by March 10 and conclude by the second or third week of May for the well-being of the players as well as the fans.
“From next year,” Saikia told Press Trust of India, "we'll make an effort and I have already instructed our general manager games development to look for the windows whether we can start it by 10th of March so that we want to conclude it by 15th of May so that there is no adverse weather conditions in the run-up to the final stages playoff and the finals of the IPL 2027.
“I'm hearing a lot of complaints from the fans as well as from the players, because not all players are very well-equipped or well-acclimatised to play in such hot conditions. So, to provide a pleasant atmosphere for the tournament, we want to close it by 15th of May.”
This arrangement will certainly relieve several players who are part of England's ODI plans. Jos Buttler, Will Jacks, Sam Curran, Jacob Bethell and Jofra Archer are all expected to feature in the IPL next year and might also be part of the ODI squad for the series against Pakistan.
Bangladesh men’s first Test in England since 2010
Within 48 hours after the conclusion of the ODI series against Pakistan, England will face Bangladesh in a one-off Test match at Lord’s. This will be the first home Test for England against Bangladesh since 2010. Moreover, the two teams are facing each other in the format for the first time since England toured Bangladesh in October 2016.
Bangladesh defeated England in the second Test to draw the two-match series 1-1. The two teams didn’t face each other again in Tests despite the introduction of the World Test Championship, where each team plays six different series: three at home and three away in every two-year cycle.
Bangladesh women’s first-ever bilateral tour of England
In another first, the England and Bangladesh women's teams will compete in their first-ever bilateral series next year. They will face off in three T20Is and as many ODIs between September 8 and 24.
The two teams have locked horns only in the ODI and T20I World Cups so far, with England winning all seven encounters (4 T20Is and 3 ODIs). Buoyed by significant improvements in recent years, Bangladesh will be eager to capitalize on this tour.
WTC Final returns to Oval
The fourth edition of the World Test Championship will conclude next year, and the final will be played at the Oval from June 9 to 13. The summit clash to mark the champion of the longest format will take place at the Oval for the second time since the introduction of the WTC.
The venue hosted the WTC final in 2023 when Australia defeated India by 209 runs. The Oval will also become the first venue to host the marquee fixture twice. Ageas Bowl and Lord’s were the venues for the other two WTC finals in 2021 and 2023, respectively.
Ageas Bowl gets its first-ever Ashes Test
Ageas Bowl is set to host an Ashes Test for the first time next year. England and Australia will lock horns at the venue in the fourth Test of the series from July 21 to 25. The venue in Southampton has taken more than 15 years to secure the hosting rights of an Ashes Test.
The venue hosted its inaugural Test in June 2011 when Sri Lanka toured England. As its most recent Test was the 2021 WTC Final between India and New Zealand, next year’s Ashes fixture will mark the return of Test cricket to Southampton after a six-year hiatus.
Separate window for The Hundred
There is also the usual dedicated window for The Hundred. The men’s Ashes concludes on August 2 and their subsequent T20I series against New Zealand begins on September 7, while the women’s last Ashes fixture is scheduled for July 20, before they start the Bangladesh series on September 8, leaving almost all of August for The Hundred.
Follow Wisden for all cricket updates, including live scores, match stats, quizzes and more. Stay up to date with the latest cricket news, player updates, team standings, match highlights, video analysis and live match odds.
