Australia return to Darwin for a Test match for the first time since 2004, while Mackay is set to host his first Test match after Cricket Australia confirmed the schedule for the two-match series against Bangladesh in August.
The opening Test will be held at Marrara Stadium in Darwin from August 13-17, while the second Test is scheduled for August 22-26 at the Great Barrier Reef Arena in Mackay.
The series will mark the first Test meeting between Australia and Bangladesh since 2017 and only the second time the two teams have contested a Test series in Australia since the 2003 clash.
A series scheduled for mid-2020 in Bangladesh was canceled due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The upcoming matches are part of the current World Test Championship (WTC) cycle and mark the start of a serious period of red-ball cricket for Australia, who will play at least 20 Tests between August 2024 and July 2025.
Darwin and Mackay both played matches during Australia’s white-ball top-end series against South Africa last year. Darwin has previously played two Test matches against Bangladesh in 2003 and Sri Lanka in 2004.
Cricket Australia chief executive Todd Greenberg acknowledged the increasingly crowded international calendar.
“It’s no secret that the international calendar is packed now and we’re fortunate to have world-class facilities in August to ensure we have another window for Test cricket outside of the summer,” Greenberg said.
The Mackay fixture will serve as Queensland’s only Test next season, missing Kappa during the key summer event.
New Zealand are scheduled to tour Australia and play four Tests in Perth, Adelaide, Melbourne and Sydney.
Planning uncertainty surrounding Gabba’s future ahead of the 2032 Olympics has complicated planning, although the venue is expected to return to the calendar before its proposed demolition after the Games.
Following the Bangladesh series, Australia travel to South Africa for three Tests and a white-ball leg that includes one-dayers in Zimbabwe.
The home summer will feature a limited-overs tour of England before the New Zealand Test series.
Australia are also set to tour India for a five-match Test series in January and February, before hosting England at the MCG in March for the 150th anniversary Test.
The next overseas Ashes series is scheduled for June and July 2027, with a potential World Test Championship final before Australia qualify.
Australia also travel to Bangladesh in June for a white-ball series consisting of ODIs and T20Is.
Australia-Bangladesh Test Series Schedule: