Australian Test summer to begin with historic Pakistan Test in Perth

Perth is set to host the first Test of the three-match series between Australia and Pakistan later this year in December.

According to reports in the Australian media, the Test summer will begin in Perth and then move to the next two traditional holiday Tests in Melbourne and Sydney.

Pakistan has never played a red-ball Test match at Optus Stadium, with their previous visits being limited to T20 matches, including their shock loss to Zimbabwe in the T20 World Cup last year.

WATCH: Amir loses cool, screams at teammate

Last month, the Western Australian Cricket boss, Christina Matthews, had appealed to Cricket Australia (CA) to give Perth a chance to host a historic Test match against Pakistan instead of the West Indies for the second consecutive year.

“We’ve certainly made it known our preference is Pakistan,” Matthews told The West Australian.

“We haven’t had Pakistan here for a very long time, so being able to host them at Optus Stadium, which they’ve played at in T20 games but never for a Test match, brings something different into the environment, and they’re doing quite well from a Test cricket perspective in recent times and have got some exciting players,” Mathews added.

Cricket Australia wants to give a more appealing fixture to Perth this coming season, as the city had missed out on two years of Test cricket due to Covid-19 restrictions.