‘Bilateral cricket will soon be history! Long live bilateral cricket!’ Recall former India cricket coach Ravi Shastri waxing eloquent recently that bilateral Twenty20s should be stopped? Well, India will play 76 bilateral T20s alone over the next four years.
India will play two five-Test series each against Australia and England during the International Cricket Council (ICC) Men’s Future Tours Programme (FTP) for the period 2023-27 that was confirmed Wednesday.
One of the major highlights of the FTP are the two sets of five-match Border-Gavaskar Test series in each of the upcoming cycles of the ICC World Test Championship.
A fiercely contested clash in recent times, Australia are set to welcome India for a five-match series in the 2023-25 cycle of the WTC while a reciprocal tour is set to be played in the 2025-27 cycle.
It will be the first time in over 30 years that the two sides will clash in a five-match Test series, the last time being 1992.
The announcement of the FTP, a result of a collective effort of Full Members with ICC’s support, ensures certainty of cricket fixtures with the confirmation of all bilateral series across the three formats. The exact dates of the series are for the Members to announce in due course.
For the record, the 12 Members will play a total of 777 international matches – 173 Tests, 281 ODIs and 323 T20Is – in the 2023-2027 FTP cycle compared to the 694 in the current one.
This includes the next two cycles of the ICC Men’s World Test Championship, multiple ICC events and a host of bilateral as well as tri-series action.
India kick off their engagements for the next cycle with a tour of the West Indies in July next year, when they play two Tests, three ODIs and three T20Is. After hosting Australia for limited overs series, India will embark on their next full tour in December 2023 to South Africa.
India, who finished runners-up to New Zealand in the first ICC World Test Championship that ran from 2019-21, play the first of their four five-Test series against England at home starting January 2024. They play Australia in an away series from November that year to January 2025, England in a series starting June 2025 and again versus Australia at home in January-February 2027.
Afghanistan, who debuted in Tests in Bengaluru in June 2018, will be hosted again by India in the coming FTP cycle as they are pencilled to play one Test and three ODIs in mid-2026.
India are also committed to playing other limited overs series against Australia, England, New Zealand, Sri Lanka and the West Indies over the next four years, apart from matches that are part of the two WTC cycles falling in this period.
WTC series: India’s WTC fixtures for the 2023-25 series comprise home series against Bangladesh, England and New Zealand and away series in Australia, South Africa and the West Indies. In the 2025-27 WTC, they are scheduled to play Australia, South Africa and the West Indies at home, while their away series will be in England, New Zealand and Sri Lanka.
The announcement of the Men’s FTP comes a day after the first ever Women’s FTP was announced.
ICC GM of Cricket Wasim Khan said: “I’d like to thank our Members for the effort that has gone into creating this FTP for the next four years. We are incredibly lucky to have three vibrant formats of the game, with an outstanding programme of ICC global events and strong bilateral and domestic cricket and this FTP is designed to allow all cricket to flourish.
“The landscape around the game is continuing to evolve and we will work closely with Members as we collectively adapt to that. We are committed to growing the game and giving more fans more opportunities to enjoy cricket, but are very mindful of the need to balance that ambition with the welfare of players.”
BCCI secretary Jay Shah added: “I want to take this opportunity to congratulate all my colleagues at the CEC for the historic Women’s FTP – the first of its kind and the continued spirit of partnership to conclude the Men’s FTP which provides certainty to all the members to develop their cricketing eco-systems as well as commercial programmes around their own calendars.”
India Home Series 2023 – 2027
2023 Sep Australia 3 ODIs, 5 T20s
2024 Jan England 5 Tests
2024 Sep Bangladesh 2 Tests, 3 T20s
2024 Oct New Zealand 3 Tests
2025 Jan England 3 ODIs, 5 T20s
2025 Oct West Indies 2 Tests
2025 Nov South Africa 2 Tests, 3 ODIs, 5 T20s
2026 Jan New Zealand 3 ODIs, 5 T20s
2026 Jun Afghanistan 1 Test, 3 ODIs
2026 Sep West Indies 3 ODIs, 5 T20s
2026 Dec SL 3 ODIs, 3 T20s
2027 Jan Australia 5 Tests
What is noteworthy in the above FTP is that between 2023 and 2027 there will be at least one “strong” cricket nation (read that as Australia, England, South Africa and New Zealand) India will be hosting in the FTP that has been announced. Ergo, expect the BCCI to mint some more seriously inflated moolah when the domestic media rights come up for auction.
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