Alice Springs will host the inaugural National Indigenous Cricket Championships next year while the city will also be home to the Imparja Cup until at least 2018, Cricket Australia has announced.

In a revamp of the all-Indigenous cricket carnival, the state and territory division will become the stand-alone National Indigenous Cricket Championships from next year as part of Cricket Australia’s restructured Indigenous cricket competitions.

Cricket Australia said the move to a standalone championship featuring the nation’s brightest Indigenous talent was made to further entrench Indigenous cricket within Australian cricket’s high performance pathway.

NSW Women celebrate their win in the 2015 Imparja Cup final // Getty Images

The major centres, community and schools divisions will remain as the Imparja Cup and will also be held in Alice Springs for the next three years under the new agreement.

Cricket Australia general manager of game and market development Andrew Ingleton said the commitment to holding the events in Alice Springs further entrenched cricket in the Northern Territory.

“Providing our most talented Indigenous cricketers with further development opportunities is central to the decision to create the National Indigenous Cricket Championships,” Ingleton said.

“The 22-year heritage of the Imparja Cup – and the participation opportunities it presents for Indigenous men, women and children – will continue thanks to this partnership.”

Western Australia men's players celebrate winning the 2015 Imparja Cup // Getty Images

Australian Cricket’s National Indigenous Cricket Advisory Committee backed the decision to restructure the championships and hold them in Alice Springs, while Toowoomba and Adelaide had also submitted proposals to host the events.

The first Imparja Cup was held in Alice Springs in 1994, an initiative of Alice Springs Indigenous cricketers Shane and Mervyn Franey and Tennant Creek’s Ross Williams, who wanted to promote cricket participation in Indigenous communities across the Territory.

From there it evolved from a two-team competition between Alice Springs and Tennant Creek into a national tournament, with the 2015 Imparja Cup featuring more than 52 teams and more than 500 participants.

“The Imparja Cup features the cream of Australia’s Indigenous cricketers battling it out at the top level, and is also a celebration of culture and participation which brings communities together in Central Australia,” said Northern Territory minister for sport and recreation Gary Higgins.

Of Australian Cricket’s 1.1 million participants, more than 21,000 identify as Indigenous – a figure that is ahead of Australian Cricket’s strategic goal to reach 27,000 by 2018.

Alice Springs Mayor Damien Ryan, CA Executive General Manager Game and Market Development Andrew Ingleton, NT player Joel Liddle, NT Sports Minister Gary Higgins, NT Cricket CEO Troy Watson at the announcement in Alice Springs today // cricket.com.au