England next Test match: when do England’s cricketers play next in 2023 - South Africa and New Zealand date

England cricket fans will be celebrating the monumental series win Ben Stokes and his squad have just completed in Pakistan but will now mourn the month we must wait for the next spectacle.

This was England’s first Test match in the country since 2005, but this did not stop the continuing phenomenon of ‘Bazball’ and England thrashed their opponents 3-0. It took just 38 minutes for Ben Duckett and Ben Stokes to wrap up the remaining 55 runs this morning as they pursued 167.

It has been a series of continuous record-breakers with the final being this is Pakistan’s first ever 3-0 whitewash on home soil. Yesterday’s play saw Rehan Ahmed become the youngest Test debutant to bowl a fifer when he took five wickets for 48 runs, while the first day of the series in Rawalpindi saw England hit the highest ever score for a first day of play with four players scoring centuries (Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope and Harry Brook).

The result of the first Test match was hailed as one of the greatest Test matches to have taken place, only for this sentiment to be said after the second and third was concluded too, so with Bazball in full swing, when will next see our cricketers in action?

When is England’s next Test series?

Ben Stokes and his red-ball squad will now rest until they take on current Test Championship holders New Zealand for a two test series in February. This will be the first time England have played the Black Caps with Tim Southee as captain, following Kane Williamson’s retirement from the role last week. It is hoped that Jonny Bairstow will be available to return for selection following his ‘freak’ injury earlier this autumn.

The first Test is due to be played from 16 February until 20 February (if all five days are required) and will be hosted at the Bay Oval with a start time of 1am GMT.

The second will be played from 23 February until 28 February at the Basin Reserve in Wellington and the start-time for this Test is 10pm GMT.

England will then play a one-off Test match against Ireland from 1-4 June before starting the Ashes series against Australia which, for the first time ever, will not have an August Test match due to The Hundred tournament.

When are England’s white-ball side next playing?

For those of us unable to wait until mid-February to watch England cricket, Jos Buttler will be leading a white-ball series against South Africa at the end of January:

• First ODI: 27 January, Mangaung Oval, 8am GMT
• Second ODI: 29 January, Mangaung Oval, 8am GMT
• Third ODI: 1 February, Diamond Oval, 11am GMT

This will be the first time the white-ball side has been in action since winning the T20 World Cup in Australia in November. They have not had the best luck with the 50-over format, losing to India 2-1 and drawing with South Africa in the summer, but will hope to bounce back before they begin their ODI World Cup defence later in 2023.

How to watch England cricket

Sky Sports have the majority of cricket action with both Main Event and the dedicated Cricket channel showing the coverage. The upcoming series against South Africa and New Zealand will therefore be available to watch here, however, BT Sport will once again resume their coverage of The Ashes next summer.

Sky Sports subscriptions cost from £46/month and viewers can stream the action through the SkyGo app while BT Sport costs £26/month. Fans can also access Sky Sport with a NowTV pass for £11.98/day.