India vs New Zealand 2026 schedule: 12-match tour opens October 22
File photo: Michal Klajban (CC BY-SA 4.0), via Wikimedia Commons
India's tour of New Zealand runs October 22 to December 1, 2026: five T20Is, five ODIs and two Tests, starting at Hagley Oval, Christchurch.
What Happened
India's men's cricket team begins a 41-day tour of New Zealand on Thursday, October 22, 2026, with the first of five T20 Internationals at Hagley Oval in Christchurch. The tour, which runs until December 1, also includes five One-Day Internationals and two Test matches, spread across six New Zealand venues. Shreyas Iyer will captain India in the T20Is and Shubman Gill in the ODIs, according to the squads announced by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).
Key Facts
- Dates: October 22 to December 1, 2026.
- Format: five T20Is, five ODIs and two Tests.
- T20Is: Christchurch (October 22 and 24), Wellington (October 27), Auckland (October 30) and Hamilton (November 1).
- ODIs: Auckland (November 4), Wellington (November 7), Hamilton (November 10) and Mount Maunganui (November 13 and 15).
- Tests: Basin Reserve, Wellington (November 19 to 23) and Hagley Oval, Christchurch (November 27 to December 1).
- Captains: Shreyas Iyer leads the T20I side; Shubman Gill leads the ODI side.
- Hagley Oval in Christchurch hosts three matches in all: the first two T20Is and the final Test.
Why It Matters
A tour that covers all three formats away from home asks a lot of a team. This one packs twelve international matches into 41 days: five T20Is in eleven days, five ODIs in twelve days, and two Tests in the last fortnight. That pace, with travel between six venues on both of New Zealand's main islands, means India will need to rotate players and rely on the depth of its squads.
The split captaincy is the main storyline. With Iyer in charge of the T20 side and Gill of the ODI side, India is giving different leaders their own formats, and this tour will be an early measure of how that works away from home. The selectors also used the squads to give a run to younger players, which means places in India's white-ball teams could be decided by performances in New Zealand.
The order of the formats also matters. The tour begins with the shortest format and ends with the longest, so players picked for more than one squad will have to switch from T20 batting and bowling to the patience of five-day cricket within a few weeks. The two Tests, at the Basin Reserve and Hagley Oval, will be the final and toughest part of the trip.
For Indian fans, the time difference matters. New Zealand is ahead of India, so many matches will be played during the Indian night or morning. Fans should check the official broadcast schedule for each match's start time in India.
| Format | Matches | Dates | Venues |
|---|---|---|---|
| T20I | 5 | October 22 to November 1 | Christchurch (2), Wellington, Auckland, Hamilton |
| ODI | 5 | November 4 to November 15 | Auckland, Wellington, Hamilton, Mount Maunganui (2) |
| Test | 2 | November 19 to December 1 | Wellington, Christchurch |
Impact
Short-term: The five T20Is in ten days will show quickly how Iyer's side settles. Early results will shape the mood for the ODI leg that follows. There are only two clear days between the last T20I in Hamilton on November 1 and the first ODI in Auckland on November 4.
Long-term: Individual performances in New Zealand could decide which younger players keep their places in India's squads across formats.
Who is affected: India's and New Zealand's players and selectors; cricket fans in both countries, including people of Indian origin living in New Zealand; and broadcasters who will carry the matches.
Key Takeaway
India's 12-match tour of New Zealand begins in Christchurch on October 22, 2026 and runs to December 1, with Shreyas Iyer captaining the T20Is and Shubman Gill the ODIs.
Questions and Answers
What is the schedule of the India vs New Zealand series in 2026?
India play five T20Is from October 22 to November 1, five ODIs from November 4 to November 15, and two Tests from November 19 to December 1, 2026, all in New Zealand.
When and where is the first India vs New Zealand T20I?
The first T20I is on Thursday, October 22, 2026, at Hagley Oval in Christchurch. The second is at the same ground on October 24.
Who is captaining India on the New Zealand tour?
Shreyas Iyer captains India in the T20Is and Shubman Gill in the ODIs, according to the squads announced by the BCCI.
Where are the two Tests being played?
The first Test is at the Basin Reserve in Wellington from November 19 to 23, and the second at Hagley Oval in Christchurch from November 27 to December 1.
Disclaimer: Prepared by the Peepals newsroom from publicly available sources with AI assistance. Information is accurate to the best of our knowledge at the time of publication and may change. Images may be representative. Not professional advice. Report an error via our contact page.
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