England will play a 50-over warm-up match against a Western Australia XI at the Waca in Perth before their white-ball tour of Australia, a scheduled fixture six days before the opening one-day international.
The match is scheduled for 7 November, with England’s first ODI against Australia taking place at Perth’s Optus Stadium on 13 November. England are due to play three ODIs and five T20 internationals in Australia between 13 November and 2 December.
The BBC also reported that England are due to play a 50-over tri-series in Pakistan against the hosts and Sri Lanka later this month. That series is listed separately from the Australia itinerary, which starts with the Perth ODI on 13 November and continues until 2 December.
The confirmation gives England a formal opportunity to prepare ahead of an ODI leg that forms part of their build-up to the 2027 World Cup in southern Africa. The BBC reported that England have a minimum of 20 official ODIs remaining before that tournament.
The BBC also reported that England have struggled recently in 50-over cricket, despite winning three series in a row this year. The Waca game is a 50-over warm-up ahead of England’s official ODI schedule.
A rare white-ball tour warm-up
The Waca fixture marks a departure from England’s recent white-ball touring schedules. According to the BBC, England had not played a white-ball warm-up match for six years before this arrangement.
It follows comments made last month by coach Brendon McCullum, who said he hoped England could arrange preparatory games to bring players up to speed before the World Cup. McCullum identified a relative lack of experience within the 50-over group as a reason for seeking additional opportunities.
In England’s third ODI against Sri Lanka, the BBC said Joe Root was the only player in the XI with more than 50 caps while Jos Buttler and Adil Rashid were injured. McCullum said that, apart from Buttler, Root and Rashid, there was not extensive experience in the side, and that England would seek a selection of warm-up matches to accelerate players’ development.
The fixture may help address the experience issue McCullum identified, although its eventual value will depend on how England use it. It gives England a scheduled 50-over match before the opening ODI in Perth, although the warm-up itself will be played at the Waca rather than Optus Stadium.
Preparation returns to focus in Perth
The fixture also comes after criticism of England’s preparation for last winter’s Ashes tour. Before that Test series, England played an in-house warm-up at Lilac Hill, a club ground. The England and Wales Cricket Board had said at the time that it had been told the Waca was unavailable, the BBC reported.
England lost the first Ashes Test in Perth inside two days and were beaten in the following two matches, conceding the series at the earliest opportunity.
The new fixture is specifically a white-ball match and should not be treated as a direct answer to those Test-tour issues. Even so, it provides England with a scheduled 50-over game at the start of a tour whose opening ODI will also be played in Perth, albeit at a different ground.
More warm-up matches planned
The BBC reported that England are also due to have warm-up fixtures before Test tours of South Africa and Bangladesh this winter, as well as before the one-off 150th anniversary Test against Australia in Melbourne in March. Those arrangements were already in place before Stephen Fleming replaced McCullum as Test coach during the summer.
Since the Ashes, the ECB and Cricket Australia have discussed a reciprocal arrangement intended to give touring sides better preparation before Ashes series, according to the BBC.
For England’s ODI side, the immediate significance is more straightforward: a match against a Western Australia XI has been added before the Australia series begins. England have a minimum of 20 official ODIs before the World Cup, according to the BBC.