Edgbaston to host England's first day-night Test in 2017

The England and Wales Cricket Board have announced that next summer will see the first day-night Test match held in England.

Edgbaston will host the match, in which England will face the West Indies on 17-21 August in the first match of a three-Test series at the end of the summer. The matches will be played with the controversial pink ball specifically designed for day-night cricket, as will the tourists' final warm-up match against Derbyshire the preceding week.

Play will begin at 2pm BST on each day of the match, going on until 9pm with an extra half an hour available to make up any overs lost.

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The day-night match will be the third of its kind - Australia triumphing in the first in a thrilling contest against New Zealand last November, while Pakistan will play the West Indies in the second such Test beginning next Thursday.

"We’re excited by the prospect of staging our first ever day-night Test match," said ECB CEO Tom Harrison when the announcement was made.

"It’s a great opportunity to attract more fans to the game and see how staging Test cricket in the afternoon and evening fits with working patterns and modern lifestyles, whilst maintaining the deep tradition of Test cricket."

He also admitted to hopes that the occasion would "help attract different fans and families to Test cricket", as shorter form T20 and 50 over matches begin to dominate attendance ratings across the cricketing world.

Warwickshire chief executive Neil Snowball added: "Bringing day-night Test cricket to England is an innovative and very exciting development for the game, and we’re thrilled that Edgbaston will be the first venue to host a match played in this format."