Australia vs India 2018/19: New Perth Stadium to potentially host India for its first ever Test match

What's the story?

The all-new Perth Stadium is scheduled to host its first International fixture later this month between Australia and England. The multi-purpose stadium is now in the reckoning to host its first Test fixture which is to be played against India when the team from the subcontinent tour Australia in late November or early December this year.

James Sutherland, the Chief Executive of Cricket Australia refused to rule out the possibility of a day and night Test match in the series against India. While speaking to ABC last month, he said, "I would anticipate there's not going to be too much problem there."

In case you didn't know..

The new Perth Stadium was in line to host the third Ashes Test in December last year but was deemed only 83% complete by the authorities. An estimated total of AUD 1.2 billion has been invested in erecting the enormous Perth Stadium.

The heart of the matter

The multi-sports stadium which is also known as the Optus Stadium will serve the Australian Cricket team as well as Australian rules Football games. The arena boasts a record capacity of 60,000 which is only behind the capacities of the famous Melbourne Cricket Ground and Stadium Australia in Sydney.

At the outset of the Australian summer this year, India will be the first team to tour Down Under for four Test matches. A drop-in pitch is said to be used for the first ever Test match at the venue which is expected to recreate the traits of a conventional Perth wicket. The tour will also include Boxing Day fixture at the MCG and a New Year's Test match at the SCG.

What's next?

The official launch of the Perth Stadium is scheduled on 21st of January and a week later Australia plays England in the final one-dayer of the Gillette ODI series. More details about its first Test match against India will be revealed in the forthcoming days.

Author's Take

The teams playing the first Test fixture of any cricket ground will be ingrained deep into the stadium's history and India will be lucky to be a part of it. However, with the wicket more likely to resemble the traditional Perth pitch, it will be a daunting task for the Indians to cope with the conditions in the very first fixture.