The Kiwis will feature in their first Boxing Day Test in Melbourne after 32 years. Australia will host New Zealand in a three-match Test series next year, as confirmed by New Zealand Cricket (NZC) on Wednesday (June 20).

The Test series between the two Trans-Tasman rivals will be played under the confines of the newly formed World Test Championship (WTC). New Zealand Cricket also released the details of their next five-year touring schedule.

The Black Caps side will start their World Test Championship journey by touring Sri Lanka in August 2019. The Sri Lanka tour will be followed by two home Tests against England and then they will tour Down Under.

New Zealand’s 2019-20 summer programme also includes two home Tests against the numero uno side, India.

"By bringing more relevance and context into Test and ODI cricket we can farewell what used to be known as neutral games, and introduce interest into every fixture, no matter which side is playing," NZC chief executive, David White, quoted as saying by newshub.co.nz.

"In a rapidly-evolving world, this will help increase engagement in cricket and grow the game both locally and globally," he added.

The ICC today released the full Future Tours Programme (FTP) for the period 2018-2023, including the format and point allocation system for the World Test Championship and the ODI qualifying league.

New Zealand skipper Kane Williamson seemed pleased with the new FTP as he said: "It's exciting for fans and players to see the new context which is being given to ODI and Test cricket."

"There's a lot to look forward to, but it's hard to go past the three-match test series in Australia next year as a highlight. I think all New Zealanders will have a circle around that one," he concluded.

(With inputs from Newshub)