Auckland: Australia's tour features two Twenty20s in late February before a five-match ODI series for the Chappell-Hadlee Trophy and two Tests - rather than the originally scheduled three - in Wellington and Hamilton starting on March 19 and 27 respectively.

It will be the first time in 20 years that New Zealand have hosted Australia for a series of fewer than three Tests and it confirms that Australia and New Zealand players will not be available for IPL till March 31.

"Playing Test cricket in New Zealand after the cessation of daylight saving and deep into the second week of April is not realistic," Justin Vaughan, the chief executive of New Zealand Cricket, said. "Therefore our only option has been to limit the series to two Tests.

"This is shaping up as a very exciting season for cricket fans - and a really busy one for the Black Caps. New Zealand has never before hosted more than five Tests in a season, so the six Test matches being played this summer is a tremendous programme."

The summer will feature two one-day internationals against Australia at Auckland's Eden Park, which will at the time remain under redevelopment with a reduced capacity. Only 8000 seats will be available for each of those games, instead of the usual level of up to 25,000, and fans can pre-register for tickets at the New Zealand Cricket website.

Itinerary
February 26 - Twenty20 international at Westpac Stadium, Wellington
February 28 - Twenty20 international at AMI Stadium, Christchurch
March 3 - 1st ODI at McLean Park, Napier
March 6 - 2nd ODI at Eden Park, Auckland
March 9 - 3rd ODI at Seddon Park, Hamilton
March 11 - 4th ODI at Eden Park, Auckland
March 13 - 5th ODI at Westpac Stadium, Wellington
March 19-23 - 1st Test at Basin Reserve, Wellington
March 27-31 - 2nd Test at Seddon Park, Hamilton