| Boxing Day Test | |
|---|---|
| Status | Active |
| Genre | Sporting event |
| Begins | 26 December |
| Ends | On or before 30 December |
| Frequency | Annual |
| Venue | Centurion Park |
| Location(s) | Centurion, Gauteng |
| Country | South Africa |
| Inaugurated | 1913 |
The Boxing Day Test is a traditional cricket match which is held in South Africa annually. [1]
The history of South Africa's Boxing Day Test traces back to 1913, with a match against England in Johannesburg. [1] The tradition became more established after South Africa's return to international cricket in the early 1990s, with the 1992 match against India being a notable milestone. [1]
In 2012, an attempt was made to replace the Test with a T20I format, but it was unsuccessful. [1] [2] [3]
In 2020, the Boxing Test match against Sri Lanka was notably played behind closed doors due to COVID-19 precautions. [1]
On several occasions South Africa has played in Australia's annual Boxing Day Test as the touring side; on such occasions no Boxing Day Test match was held in South Africa. [1]
The first modern Boxing Day Test was held at St George's Park Cricket Ground in Port Elizabeth in 1992. [1] Two years later, in 1994, the venue shifted to Kingsmead Cricket Ground in Durban. Durban's Kingsmead remained the predominant venue for the event until 2011, when the Test was hosted at Newlands Cricket Ground in Cape Town. [4]
In 2018, the venue was shifted to SuperSport Park in Centurion, reflecting changes in preferences and attendance patterns. [1]
| Opposition Team | GP | W | D | L | Win % | Recent Test |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Australia | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 25.00 | Boxing Day 1966 |
 England | 13 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 23.08 | Boxing Day 2019 |
 India | 7 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 71.43 | Boxing Day 2023 |
 New Zealand | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 66.67 | Boxing Day 1994 |
 Pakistan | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 100.00 | Boxing Day 2018 |
 Sri Lanka | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 50.00 | Boxing Day 2020 |
 West Indies | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 75.00 | Boxing Day 2014 |
 Zimbabwe | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.00 | Boxing Day 2017 |
| Total | 38 | 19 | 10 | 9 | 50.00 | Boxing Day 2023 |
Dale Willem Steyn is a South African former professional cricketer who played for the South African cricket team. He is regarded by many as the greatest bowler of the modern era. Steyn's ability to produce late swing at high pace - a rare and lethal combination amongst fast bowlers - made him stand apart from many of his contemporaries. Many cricketing legends have regarded his length deliveries unplayable when the ball swung. During the 2007–08 season, Steyn achieved a tally of 78 wickets at an average of 16.24, and was subsequently rewarded with the ICC 2008 Test Cricketer of the Year Award. He was named one of the Wisden Cricketers of the Year in 2013, and the Wisden Leading Cricketer in the World for the year 2013 in 2014's Wisden Cricketers' Almanack. In December 2015 he injured his shoulder in the Durban Test against England ; after this injury his career was a short lived one as it was followed by multiple injuries; these injuries were the reason why many cricketing greats didn't even consider post 2015 Steyn as "The Dale Steyn" which the batsmen feared to face. He was featured in Wisden Cricketers of the Decade at the end of 2019. He also was included in the ICC Test Team of the Decade at the end of 2020.
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Events in the year 2019 in South Africa.
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