Fans to take to the field ahead of England-Pakistan series

A cricket match between England's fans and their British-Pakistani counterparts will take place in Birmingham on the eve of next month's first Test at Lord's.

Teams representing the Barmy Army and the newly formed National Asian Cricket Council will compete for the Edgbaston Fans Trophy at Attock Cricket Club on July 13. The T20 fixture will start at 6pm, and it will be free entry for spectators.

"Edgbaston has been working closely with both supporter groups for several years and, with excitement building towards the start of the Investec Series, we wanted to give a greater profile to the fans," Neil Snowball, chief executive at Edgbaston Stadium, said.

"Sport is able to unite people from different cultures and beliefs from around the world. We're thrilled to be the architects of this first competitive match between England and Pakistan fans, and hope that this is something we can repeat for future series."

The National Asian Cricket Council was created by the Club Cricket Conference to ensure that British Asian cricket has effective representation within the recreational game.

"Cricket embraces and promotes all that is great about integrating different communities on and off the pitch," Gulfraz Riaz, the NACC lead spokesman, said. "We look forward to a well-spirited match, and I urge fans from all communities to come and support what promises to be a great day."

Paul Burnham, founder and managing director of the Barmy Army, said: "We are really excited about this game and expect it to be a fun-packed evening of cricket and fundraising. Hopefully this will be the first of many such fixtures, and we can start welcoming many more British Asians to join the Barmy Army Supporters Club."