Australia headlines as New Zealand's main competitor in February 2024 after Australia confirmed its return to New Zealand after eight years.
The reason for the eight-year absence from New Zealand remains unknown as the Kiwis have featured in multiple T20 series and a Test series back in 2019-20 in Australia but not on home soil.
New Zealand has also added multiple back-to-back matches in their upcoming summer in the hopes of boosting crowds and helping maintain a smaller environmental footprint rather than moving from place to place on a regular basis. New Zealand Cricket Chief Executive David White explained the idea to ESPN Cricinfo.
Australia isn't the only team that New Zealand will take on in the summer with three ODIs and three T20s against Bangladesh in December, Five T20s against Pakistan in January, two Tests against South Africa in early February before adding another chapter to the famous Australia-New Zealand rivalry with three T20s and two Test matches. The full schedule of the Australiaianย series is as follows:
Australia's 2024 tour of New Zealand
First T20I:ย Wellington, February 21
Second T20I:ย Auckland, February 23
Third T20I: Auckland, February 25
First Test: Wellington, February 29-March 4
Second Test: Christchurch, March 8-12
The T20s will capture the interest of many cricket fans as Australia fell to New Zealand in the most recent T20 World Cup tournament in 2022 eliminating them from any chance of going back-to-back as world T20 champions.
The previous Test series in Australia in the summer of 2019-20 also intrigued both nations despite the 3-0 series win for Australia. The fierce battle between Matthew Wade and Neil Wagner had everyone on edge especially after Wagner then found a potential weakness with Steven Smith's batting with a barrage for well-directed short balls.
The full New Zealand schedule is as follows:
