 "ICC announces men's FTP from 2023; India to play against Australia, England")
The International Cricket Council on Wednesday released the Men's Future Tours Programme (FTP) 2023-27, confirming the international calendar for all Full Members across all three formats of the game.
In total, there will be 777 international matches - 173 Tests, 281 ODIs and 323 T20Is - in the 2023-2027 FTP cycle compared to the 694 in the current one. India will be playing 27 ODI matches before the 2023 ODI World Cup in India.
Meanwhile, Men in Blue will play 5 match Test series against England and Australia in the cycle. India will be playing 44 Tests, 63 ODI and 76 T20I from Aug 18, 2022 to February 2027.
England will play the most Tests in the cycle - 22. Australia will play 21 Tests in the period, while India will play 20.
Australia, England and India all play five-match Test series as part of the third and fourth editions of the WTC, which also comprises 19 two-match series and five three-match series each in the two editions of the Championship that run from 2023-25 and 2025-27.
The FTP, which includes matches in the next two cycles of the nine-team ICC World Test Championship (WTC), sees an increase in a number of matches across all three formats compared to the previous cycle that ran from 2019-23.
The FTP is the result of a collective effort of Members with ICC's support and is designed to provide clarity around the calendar. Each Member's FTP is based on collective bilateral and mutual agreements and may vary in accordance with each Member's overall cricketing and commercial programs. The 2023-27 FTP has over 770 matches.
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In addition to bilateral cricket, this four-year cycle will witness a single edition each of the Men's Cricket World Cup and Champions Trophy, and two editions each of the Men's T20 World Cups and WTC finals.
Test teams outside the WTC have also scheduled a substantial number of bilateral Test matches in an effort to boost playing opportunities in cricket's traditional multi-day format.
The first-ever women's FTP was announced on Tuesday, which will see over 300 matches played during the 2022-25 period. The media release issued on the Women's FTP is available here.
"I'd like to thank our Members for the effort that has gone into creating this FTP for the next four years. We are incredibly lucky to have three vibrant formats of the game, with an outstanding programme of ICC global events and strong bilateral and domestic cricket and this FTP is designed to allow all cricket to flourish," ICC GM of Cricket Wasim Khan said.
"The landscape around the game is continuing to evolve and we will work closely with Members as we collectively adapt to that. We are committed to growing the game and giving more fans more opportunities to enjoy cricket, but are very mindful of the need to balance that ambition with the welfare of players."
The exact dates and venues of matches outside of ICC events is for the Members to announce in due course," he added.
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