Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli to return in ODIs as BCCI announces home schedule after IPL 2026

Just a week after the potential end of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026, which is expected to end on the last day of May this year, India will be up against Afghanistan in the three ODIs and one Test match at home, which will be a great opportunity for the fans to enjoy more international games after a long eight-weeks of 20-over cricket.

The one-off Test will not be part of India’s schedule for the World Test Championship (WTC) 2025/27 cycle as they face a massive acid test at home post their whitewash defeat against South Africa by a 0-2 margin towards the end of last year. It was a challenge for Gautam Gambhir, India’s head coach, to save his seat for the Test coaching role.

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The one-off red-ball encounter will take place in New Chandigarh, which will be the country’s 31st Test venue when it hosts the Afghanistan side for five days from June 06 and 10, 2026. It will be a challenge for the Indian batters to face the quality Afghanistan spinners on a dry surface, having failed in that ability against the Proteas.

India to face Afghanistan in one-off Test and three ODIs

The New Chandigarh ground, which has so far staged the Indian Premier League (IPL) games, one men’s T20I, and a couple of games in women’s cricket, will be hosting the maiden Test match. The tour will also feature the three-match ODI series, which are scheduled to take place in Dharamshala (June 14), Lucknow (June 17), and Chennai (June 20), as they begin at 1:30 in the afternoon.

Afghanistan last played a bilateral series against India in India in 2024, which was the three-match T20I series. Their only Test game against the blue brigade was in 2018 at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru.

Afghanistan’s tour of India 2026 schedule