Galle to host first ODI since 2000

After a 17-year hiatus, ODI cricket is set to return to Galle with Zimbabwe playing the first two ODI's of the five-match series against Sri Lanka scheduled to be held on June 30 and July 2.

Seven ODIs have been played so far in Galle, but none since July 6, 2000 when Sri Lanka defeated South Africa by 37 runs during a tri-series which included Pakistan also.

Although Galle had fallen out of favour as an ODI venue because of absence of floodlights, and also due to limited capacity, the Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) has seen it a fitting venue for the lower-profile Zimbabwe games partly perhaps for financial reasons - day-night matches are costlier to host - and also because in this case, the size of the venue may translate to a marketing advantage, reports ESPNcricinfo.

The remaining three ODIs will be played at the Hambantota Stadium, which has not seen international cricket itself for two years.

The lone Test on the tour is scheduled in Colombo at the R Premadasa Stadium. The Stadium can be seen as an unusual venue for the Test format as it normally hosts only limited-overs matches.

This will be Zimbabwe's first bilateral tour of Sri Lanka since a two-ODI, three-Test tour that took place in December 2001-January 2002.

Zimbabwe Tour Schedule---

June 30: 1st ODI, Galle

July 2: 2nd ODI, Galle

July 6: 3rd ODI, Hambantota

July 8: 4th ODI, Hambantota

July 10: 5th ODI, Hambantota

July 14-18: Only Test, Colombo (RPS)

-ANI