CRICKET: HIGH demand for England’s inaugural day/night test match against the West Indies has resulted in the introduction of a temporary stand at Edgbaston.
As part of a commercial partnership with Arena Seating, Edgbaston’s capacity will increase by 850 for each day of the Investec Test Match – which takes place from Thursday, August 17, until the following Monday.
The stand will remain in place for NatWest T20 Blast Finals Day on Saturday, September 2.
The day/night test match will mark a key milestone for Edgbaston as the venue prepares to host its 50th test.
England have won 26 of the previous 49 tests, with 15 draws and just eight defeats.
The Birmingham venue helped secure the right to stage England’s first Day/Night Investec Test match by trialling a Second XI Championship match in Day/Night conditions last year between Warwickshire Second XI and Worcestershire Second XI.
Gareth Roberts, commercial director at Warwickshire CCC, said: “The reaction to hosting England’s first ever day/night Investec Test match has been fantastic.
“We’ve already sold 55,000 tickets and the allocation for day two tickets sold out prior to the temporary stand announcement.
“Having brought in the temporary stand for the recent ICC Champions Trophy, we were keen to maximise this opportunity for this first Day/Night Investec Test match and give even more supporters a chance to witness history.
“England will return to Birmingham on the back of six consecutive victories here, across all three formats of the game, and we hope that they can continue their great run at Fortress Edgbaston in August.”
