King Charles has been invited to attend a landmark cricket match in Australia next year marking 150 years since the first Test between England and Australia.
Cricket Australia confirmed the monarch has been asked to be present at the special anniversary Test between the Ashes rivals, which will be staged at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in March.
The match is being organised to commemorate the very first Test match ever played, which also took place at the MCG in 1877 and marked the birth of international cricket.
Officials hope the occasion will be a major celebration of the sport’s longest format, bringing together past and present figures connected to the historic rivalry.
Todd Greenberg, chief executive of Cricket Australia, said the King had been invited in recognition of his role as head of state in both the United Kingdom and Australia.
The move also echoes a moment from cricketing history when Queen Elizabeth II attended the fifth day of the centenary Test in Melbourne in 1977, a match staged to celebrate 100 years since the first meeting between the two nations.
Greenberg said organisers were determined to turn the anniversary fixture into a global celebration of Test cricket and its traditions.
“We want to make it an occasion that celebrates the combat between England and Australia but more broadly celebrates Test cricket and the beauty of Test cricket,” he told Australia’s Channel 7.
Alongside the King’s invitation, Cricket Australia plans to invite every living captain of England and Australia, both men’s and women’s teams, as well as all surviving players who took part in the 1977 centenary Test.
The one-off match is scheduled to begin on 11 March at the MCG, though the decision to stage the game as a day-night Test has already sparked debate among traditionalists.
Greenberg also admitted he has been pressing officials responsible for preparing the Melbourne pitch after the most recent Boxing Day Test at the ground during the Ashes concluded in just two days.
“I want to make sure we have a long Test match,” he said, adding that he would spend the next year discussing the state of the wicket with ground staff.
England are expected to arrive in Australia shortly before the anniversary match following a two-Test tour of Bangladesh in February, with plans for a warm-up fixture ahead of the historic clash.
Buckingham Palace has not yet confirmed whether the King will accept the invitation to attend the commemorative Test.
