England to begin Test series in India at new venue Raj

NEW DELHI: England will embark on their lengthy tour of India later this year with Rajkot hosting the first of the five Test matches from Nov. 9, the cricket boards announced on Friday.The western Indian city of Rajkot will be making its debut as a Test venue in the series, as will be coastal Vishakapatnam, which hosts the second Test from Nov. 17.Mohali, Mumbai and Chennai will host the remaining matches of what would be England’s first five-Test rubber in India since 1984-85.Beginning on Jan. 15, England will also play three one-dayers and as many Twenty20 Internationals.”This promises to be a historic Test series and a great opportunity for Alastair Cook and his players to repeat the memorable Test series win we enjoyed on our last trip to India in 2012,” Andrew Strauss, Director England Cricket, said in a statement.”Equally, Eoin Morgan’s white-ball squad will be anticipating hard-fought and competitive encounters against high quality opposition in both formats.” he added.Schedule:Nov. 9-13: 1st Test, RajkotNov.17-21: 2nd Test, VishakapatnamNov.26-30: 3rd Test, MohaliDec.8-12: 4th Test, MumbaiDec.16-20: 5th Test, ChennaiJan.15: 1st ODI, PuneJan.19: 2nd ODI, CuttackJan.22: 3rd ODI, KolkataJan.26: 1st T20, KanpuJan.29: 2nd T20, NagpuFeb.1: 3rd T20, Bangalore