Last week, the Board of Control for Cricket in India revealed the international schedule in the country for the 2026-27 season. With Australia, Zimbabwe, Sri Lanka and West Indies set to tour, it promises to be a bumper half-year for sports lovers. Indian fans would welcome so many international matches lined up in the country, especially following a truncated home calendar. However, the venues selected for the marquee five-match Border-Gavaskar Trophy starting next January are not aligned with the board’s own policies.
Apart from Chennai, none of the traditional Test centres with rich cricketing history has been selected. Why would the BCCI keep ignoring Mumbai, Kolkata and Bengaluru? By the end of the upcoming season, the three cities together will have hosted only three Tests since 2023, whereas Ahmedabad will have hosted its third in the same period. The cricket board’s stated policy is to rotate venues regularly, giving more cities the chance to host. But clearly that has not been its practice. Guwahati, which made its debut as a Test centre only a few months ago against South Africa, has been allotted another match. Ranchi and Nagpur will get to host their second Tests in three years. A few weeks ago, there was a raft of tributes celebrating the 25-year anniversary of the historic Kolkata Test between India and Australia. It would have been fitting for Eden Gardens to be given another match against Australia next year, especially since it has hosted only one Test since 2020.
The BCCI has also allotted a one-day match to New Delhi in December, when the national capital’s air quality may not be ideal for an outdoor match between elite sides. When Sri Lanka played in Delhi in December 2017, their players suffered from nausea and some wore masks on the field. A South Africa Test allotted to Delhi last December was shifted later and an October Test against West Indies was scheduled instead. This could well be another case of a schedule not fully thought through. So don’t be surprised if venues or dates are changed for the second year in a row. The BCCI needs to clear the air after taking a hard look at its match scheduling policy.