The India cricket team will start 2026 with a white-ball series. In fact, the Men in Blue will play no red-ball cricket in the first five months of the year. New Zealand will be India’s first opponent of 2026. January 11: That’ll be Team India’s first match day of the new year.
The start of the year will be special with Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli both featured in the ODI series against the Kiwis. Given that the modern great will play just 18 matches in 2026, all ODIs, it’s great that they’ll flag things off for India.
Shubman Gill will also make his comeback, having missed the last T20I against South Africa on December 19. Shreyas Iyer could also make his return to competitive cricket, having injured himself on October 25 in Australia.
Then the party will move to T20Is. The 5-match New Zealand series will serve as the perfect preparation for the 2026 T20 World Cup, where Team India will look to defend their title.
India cricket team’s schedule for January 2026
| Date | Match | Opposition | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| January 11 | 1st ODI | New Zealand | Vadodara |
| January 14 | 2nd ODI | New Zealand | Rajkot |
| January 18 | 3rd ODI | New Zealand | Indore |
| January 21 | 1st T20I | New Zealand | Nagpur |
| January 23 | 2nd T20I | New Zealand | Raipur |
| January 25 | 3rd T20I | New Zealand | Guwahati |
| January 28 | 4th T20I | New Zealand | Visakhapatnam |
| January 31 | 5th T20I | New Zealand | Thiruvananthapuram |
