England to play Test match in Dharamsala for the first time in next year’s tour of India but most of the country’s best-known venues do not feature in five-match series
- Dharamsala will host the fifth and final Test match of the tour next year
- The city is home to the Dalai Lama and sits on the edge of the Himalayas
- Ben Stokes’ side will also play in Hyderabad, Vizag, Rajkot and Ranchi
England will play Test cricket in Dharamsala for the first time in next year’s tour of India.
The city, which is home to the Dalai Lama and sits on the edge of the Himalayas, plays hosts to the fifth and final match of the tour, which runs from January 25 to March 11.
England are already visiting the picturesque venue during the World Cup – playing Bangladesh in October – but will be back for a week-long stay in the new year.
Many of India’s best known venues, including the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai, Delhi’s Feroz Kotla Stadium and Eden Gardens in Kolkata do not appear on the itinerary, while there is no game at Ahmedabad’s Narendra Modi Stadium, the biggest cricket venue in the world.
Instead England will play in Hyderabad, Vizag, Rajkot and Ranchi before heading to Dharamsala. There are two sets of back-to-back Tests, but the schedule also allows for extended breaks after the second and fourth matches.
Ben Stokes’ England side will be hoping to win in India for the first time since 2012
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