Headingley awarded holiday Test and an ODI

England's Alastair Cook comes out to bat during day four of the Investec Second Test at Headingley.

The ground will play host to a day/night ODI against South Africa on Wednesday, May 24 in the first of a three-match series.

And it will stage the second of three Tests against the West Indies from Friday, August 25 to Tuesday, August 29.

Mark Arthur, the Yorkshire chief executive, who recently called for an end to early-season Tests in the north of England, pronounced himself pleased with next year’s allocation.

“We are delighted to be hosting a Test match again in August and look forward to welcoming the West Indies to Headingley,” he said.

“There is a real appetite for Test match cricket in Yorkshire and we are really looking forward to staging a Test match over the August Bank Holiday weekend.”

Arthur confirmed that the South Africa ODI will be the final match before Yorkshire embark on the redevelopment of the Football Stand.

The club must rebuild the stand to satisfy international requirements.

“The hosting of the first ODI of the South African series will be the last match before we embark upon the development of the Football Stand end of the ground, in partnership with Leeds Rugby, and we will be retaining our current capacity for this match,” said Arthur.

“England’s one-day team are in a rich vein of form and currently boast five Yorkshire players, which is a great endorsement for Yorkshire’s production line of cricketers.

“With this year’s one-day international against Pakistan on course for a sell-out, it promises to be another popular fixture for international supporters in the region.”

England take on Pakistan at Headingley in a day/night match on September 1 this year in the penultimate game of a five-match series.