# England books warm-up before Australia tour

> England's white-ball team will play Western Australia XI at the Waca in Perth on 7 November, six days before their ODI series begins.
- Title: England books warm-up before Australia tour · BBC Sport
- Summary: England's white-ball team will play Western Australia XI at the Waca in Perth on 7 November, six days before their ODI series begins. England has arranged a…
- Keywords: england men's cricket team, australia, brendon mccullum, ashes, warm-up fixture, one-day internationals, sports, England, books, warm-up, tour, BBC Sport
- Source: BBC Sport — https://bbc.co.uk/sport/cricket/articles/cr0j0w2nj19no
- Published: 2026-10-05T09:30:07.381+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: england men's cricket team, australia, brendon mccullum, ashes, warm-up fixture, one-day internationals, sports
## England learns from Ashes mistakes
England and Wales Cricket Board chair Richard Thompson says the team has learned from errors before last winter's 4-1 Ashes defeat in booking a 50-over warm-up before their white-ball tour of Australia this winter.

> There is a lot that was learned.
## Warm-up match confirmed in Perth
Brendon McCullum's white-ball side will play a Western Australia XI at the Waca in Perth on 7 November, six days before their one-day international series begins.
## Previous preparation fell short
The Test team faced heavy criticism for having only one in-house warm-up before the Ashes. Their warm-up was played against the Lions at Lilac Hill, where conditions differed vastly from the first-Test venue, Optus Stadium, where England lost inside two days.
## ECB and Cricket Australia make agreement
Since the Ashes, the ECB and Cricket Australia have agreed a reciprocal arrangement that would mean touring teams are provided with better preparation before Ashes series. Thompson said these things are codified in an agreement, not relying on goodwill.

> It can't be a situation where a board chair or CEO move on and the goodwill falls away.
## McCullum wants more warm-up games
The addition to England's 50-over schedule comes after McCullum spoke of a wish to arrange such fixtures to get players up to speed before next year's 50-over World Cup. White-ball warm-up matches have faded from tours in recent years, with England not playing one for six years.

> We're going to try and put on a smattering of warm-up games to try and get guys up to speed as quickly as we can.
## England's Australia tour schedule set
England play three ODIs and five T20s in Australia this winter from 13 November to 2 December. The announcement of England's new batch of central contracts is expected to come next week.
## Key takeaway

England has arranged a 50-over warm-up match in Perth before their Australia tour this winter, learning from preparation mistakes before last year's Ashes defeat.