Historic 150th anniversary Test between Australia and England to be day-night match at MCG

The historic Test match between Australia and England, marking the 150th anniversary of the first ever Test cricket match, will be played under the MCG lights.

Cricket Australia announced on Tuesday the match, to be played in two years to the date, will be a day-night clash.

Australia won the first ever Test by 45 runs in 1877, and the Centenary Test in 1977 against England by the exact same margin.

The 150th Anniversary Test, scheduled to be played from March 11-15, 2027, will be the first time the Australian men's Test team play a day-night match at the MCG.

The MCG hosted its maiden day-night Test during last summer's Women's Ashes series. The Australians won the Test by an innings and 122 runs.

Cricket Australia (CA) chief executive Todd Greenberg said the decision to host the one-off Test as a day-night match was to entice big crowds.

"The 150th Anniversary Test at the MCG will be one of the great cricket events and playing under lights will be a fantastic way to celebrate both our game's rich heritage and Test cricket's modern evolution," he said.

"It will also help ensure more people are able to attend and watch what will be a fantastic occasion."

It will be the latest a men's Test has been staged in a summer since Australia hosted Pakistan in 1978-79.

CA still holds contractual rights to the MCG until the end of March each summer, though the AFL has recently started playing matches at the ground well before the end of the month.

Australia will host England next summer in a five-Test series as they seek to retain the urn they have held since 2017-18.

ABC/AAP

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