New Zealand Cricket has confirmed one of the biggest international home summers in recent memory, with India’s men’s team set to headline the 2026-27 schedule through a major three-format tour against the BLACKCAPS.
The tour will run from 22 October to 1 December 2026, with India playing five T20Is, five ODIs and two Tests across New Zealand. According to the official NZC media release, the 12-match India tour will be the most internationals scheduled for a single inbound tour in New Zealand Cricket history.
The wider home schedule also includes the WHITE FERNS hosting Bangladesh in December, followed by the BLACKCAPS taking on Sri Lanka in January and February to close the summer.
India Tour Brings Cricket, Culture and Community Together
The 2026-27 international home schedule was launched on Wednesday, 3 June, at the International Swaminarayan Satsang Organisation in Papatoetoe, with WHITE FERNS spinner Eden Carson, BLACKCAPS spinner Ish Sodhi, local community members and Sport and Recreation Minister Mark Mitchell in attendance.
The choice of South Auckland as the launch setting carried clear symbolism. Papatoetoe has a strong Indian and South Asian community, and the India tour is expected to be far more than a cricket series. It will also mark 100 years of sporting ties between New Zealand and India, with the New Zealand Government supporting the inbound India tour alongside other India-related sporting tours later in the year.
NZC Chief Marketing and Commercial Officer Glenn Critchley described the India tour as a “once in a generation opportunity” and said the summer would bring 42 days of international cricket across eight cities.
For Indian cricket fans in New Zealand, this will be a rare chance to see one of the world’s biggest sporting teams across all three formats. For the wider New Zealand public, it is a chance to experience the colour, sound and scale that follows Indian cricket wherever it travels.
BLACKCAPS v India Schedule
The India tour will begin with two T20Is at Hagley Oval in Christchurch on 22 and 24 October. Wellington will host the third T20I on 27 October, before the series moves to Eden Park in Auckland on 30 October and Seddon Park in Hamilton on 1 November.
The ODI series begins at Eden Park on 4 November, followed by matches in Wellington, Hamilton and Tauranga. Bay Oval in Tauranga will host the fourth and fifth ODIs on 13 and 15 November.
The Test series will begin at Cello Basin Reserve in Wellington from 19 to 23 November. The second Test will be played at Hagley Oval in Christchurch from 27 November to 1 December.
This gives fans across Christchurch, Wellington, Auckland, Hamilton and Tauranga access to one of the most anticipated tours in New Zealand cricket history.
A Modern Rivalry With Big-Match History
The BLACKCAPS and India have developed one of cricket’s most compelling modern rivalries.
New Zealand famously defeated India in the 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup semi-final in Manchester, a dramatic two-day match that remains one of the BLACKCAPS’ most memorable tournament wins. Two years later, New Zealand beat India again in the 2021 ICC World Test Championship Final in Southampton.
India has had the upper hand in more recent ICC tournaments, including the 2023 Cricket World Cup semi-final in Mumbai, the 2024 Champions Trophy Final in Dubai and the ICC T20 World Cup Final in Ahmedabad in March.
But New Zealand has also created history of its own, becoming the first team to whitewash India at home in a three-match Test series in 2024, before winning its first ODI series in India in January this year.
That recent history gives the 2026 tour added weight. This is not just a visiting superstar team coming to New Zealand. It is a rivalry with tension, respect and unfinished business.
Ish Sodhi: A Special Moment for South Auckland
For BLACKCAPS spinner Ish Sodhi, the India tour carries personal meaning.
Sodhi, New Zealand’s leading T20I wicket-taker, spoke about the challenge of facing India and the energy Indian fans bring to cricket grounds. He also reflected on his Indian heritage and the significance of representing his community at the launch in Papatoetoe, close to where he grew up.
His comments captured the deeper community significance of the tour. For many Indian New Zealanders, especially in Auckland, the series will be about identity as much as sport. It will bring together heritage, family, cricket memories and the pride of seeing India and New Zealand share the same stage.
WHITE FERNS to Host Bangladesh
The WHITE FERNS will also feature in the home summer, hosting Bangladesh for three T20Is and three ODIs from 10 to 23 December.
The series begins with two T20Is at Saxton Oval in Nelson on 10 and 12 December, followed by the third T20I at Cello Basin Reserve in Wellington on 15 December. The ODI series starts in Wellington on 18 December, before moving to Bay Oval in Tauranga for matches on 21 and 23 December.
Eden Carson, who has been recovering from an elbow injury that required surgery, said she is excited and motivated to return to the field. She also noted that Bangladesh is an improving side in women’s cricket and that the series will help the WHITE FERNS prepare for the first ICC Women’s Champions Trophy in February.
BLACKCAPS to Finish Summer Against Sri Lanka
After the India tour and the WHITE FERNS’ Bangladesh series, the BLACKCAPS will return to home action against Sri Lanka.
The Sri Lanka series will include three ODIs, three T20Is and two Tests. The ODIs will be played in Napier, Wellington and Dunedin from 16 to 22 January. The T20Is will follow in Christchurch and Nelson from 26 to 31 January.
The home international summer will conclude with two Tests. Bay Oval in Tauranga will host the first Test from 4 to 8 February, while Seddon Park in Hamilton will host the second Test from 12 to 16 February.
Sky Returns as Host Broadcaster
The India tour will also mark the return of Sky New Zealand as the host broadcaster of New Zealand Cricket internationals under a new six-season partnership.
Sky’s Head of Sports Content Gary Burchett described Team India as the “biggest show in world cricket” and said the tour would bring scale, colour, noise and sporting theatre. Sport Nation will again be the free-to-air host audio broadcaster for the NZC international summer, while the Alternative Commentary Collective will cover BLACKCAPS matches through digital channels.
Webfit News Perspective
For New Zealand’s Indian community, this tour will be one of the biggest sporting and cultural moments of 2026. Cricket has always been more than a game for the Indian diaspora. It is a connection to home, a family event, a community gathering and often a shared language across generations.
The Papatoetoe launch was a smart signal from NZC. It recognised that the India tour will not only fill stadiums. It will activate communities, local businesses, food vendors, families, sports clubs and cultural groups across Auckland and beyond.
The honest reality is simple: these matches will likely sell fast. Fans who wait too long may miss out.
NZC has encouraged fans to register with Cricket Nation for an exclusive member pre-sale in August. For Indian cricket supporters in New Zealand, this is not the tour to leave until the last minute.
References
Source: New Zealand Cricket media release, “Historic India Mega-Tour Headlines International Home Schedule,” Wednesday 3 June 2026.
Source: NZC 2026-27 Summer Schedule PDF.
