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Andrew Cornaga / Photosport
New Zealand captain Kane Williamson’s team took a 2-0 series lead over Aaron Finch’s Australia at Dunedin last Thursday.
Wellington’s Sky Stadium will host three consecutive Twenty20 doubles this week after New Zealand Cricket moved Sunday’s matches away from Tauranga’s Bay Oval for logistical reasons.
In a statement, NZC confirmed that the fifth match of the trans-Tasman men’s T20 series and the third match of the T20 women’s series between the White Ferns and England would be played in the capital on Sunday.
Matches scheduled for Wednesday will take place at the stadium, as will those on Friday, which were originally signed for Auckland’s Eden Park before the city entered Covid-19 alert level 3 restrictions during the weekend.
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Until Alert Level 2 restrictions are eased for the rest of the country, Wellington matches will be played behind closed doors and only players, officials, announcers and essential personnel will be allowed in.
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Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern put the restrictions in place for a week, until Sunday at 6 a.m., leaving the door open for a crowd to attend the game that day if the restrictions are eased.
NZC said of the Bay Oval trade: “The trade has been forced on NZC due to logistical complications arising from the transfer of the second double game on Friday from Auckland to Wellington.”
Joe Allison / Getty Images
Amy Satterthwaite and the White Ferns will face England in three T20 internationals in Wellington this week.
Tickets purchased for matches affected by alert level restrictions will automatically receive full refunds to the card or bank account number from which they were paid, NZC said.
NZC will hope it can at least open the doors Sunday as it faces a deficit in the millions of dollars from games without crowds.
As many as 14,000 tickets had already been sold for Wednesday’s game before the alert levels changed, and NZC was hoping for a crowd of more than 20,000.
In Auckland, for the originally scheduled Friday night, a crowd of more than 35,000 was predicted, with Bay Oval expected to sell out with around 10,000 fans.
Sky Stadium can hold up to 30,000 spectators for cricket, which could mean a huge crowd for a double game at least if alert levels are updated.
