The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has officially announced the schedule for New Zealand’s white-ball tour of India in early 2026. The series will feature three One-Day Internationals (ODIs) and five T20 Internationals (T20Is), offering the visitors valuable match practice ahead of the T20 World Cup scheduled for February–March.
The tour kicks off with the ODI series on January 11, with the opening match in Vadodara amid high fan anticipation. The second and third ODIs will be played in Rajkot (January 14) and Indore (January 18), respectively. The T20I series begins on January 21 in Nagpur, followed by the second game in Raipur on January 23 under floodlights.
Guwahati will host the third T20I on January 25, with Visakhapatnam set for the fourth on January 28. The final match of the tour will be played in Trivandrum on January 31. Both teams are expected to use the T20I leg to test combinations and strategies ahead of the global tournament. Notably, India enter the World Cup as defending champions, having won their second title in 2024.
New Zealand’s Most Recent White-Ball Tour Of India Was In 2023
New Zealand last toured India for a white-ball series in early 2023, which included three ODIs and three T20Is. They managed just one victory, winning the first T20I in Ranchi by 21 runs, surprising the home crowd with disciplined bowling, sharp fielding, and clever use of slower deliveries.
This time, the series will test Suryakumar Yadav’s unbeaten run as India’s T20I captain, following Rohit Sharma’s exit. Under him, India have sealed T20I series wins over Australia, South Africa, England, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and Ireland with consistency. Meanwhile, Mitchell Santner will lead the Kiwis and look to draw on past success in Indian subcontinental conditions.
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