NZ tour: Only 4-day gap before Tests, Gill and Bumrah may skip last two ODIs
India's packed New Zealand tour may force Gill, Bumrah and other Test regulars to sit out the last two ODIs to prepare for the Tests.
A row has broken out over the schedule for India's upcoming tour of New Zealand. The multi-format tour, to be held between October and December 2026, will see India play five T20Is, five ODIs and two Tests. But because of the packed and demanding schedule, the team management may have to field a weakened side in the last two ODIs, raising questions about the tour's planning and the order of matches.
The tour begins with the first T20I in Christchurch on October 22, 2026. The second T20I will be in Christchurch on October 24, the third in Wellington on October 27, the fourth in Auckland on October 30, and the fifth and last T20I in Hamilton on November 1. All T20Is will start at 12:30 pm Indian time.
The ODI series will follow immediately after the T20I series. The first ODI will be in Auckland on November 4, the second in Wellington on November 7, and the third in Hamilton on November 10. The last two ODIs will then be played in Mount Maunganui, the fourth on November 13 and the fifth on November 15. All ODIs will start at 7:30 am Indian time.
The real problem is the short gap between the fifth ODI and the first Test. Just four days after the fifth ODI ends on November 15, the first Test will be played in Wellington from November 19 to 23. The second and last Test of the series will then be held in Christchurch from November 27 to December 1. The Tests will start at 3:30 am Indian time.
This four-day gap makes it difficult for several key players to feature in both formats at the same time. Star players such as Shubman Gill, Jasprit Bumrah, KL Rahul, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Prasidh Krishna, Kuldeep Yadav and Mohammed Siraj are important members of both the ODI and Test squads. To ensure proper preparation for the Tests, these players may be rested for the last two ODIs so that they can reach Wellington in time to begin practising for red-ball cricket.
Captain Shubman Gill has always favoured deep and thorough preparation for Test cricket, but this time that approach appears to be coming at the cost of the ODI series. If Gill is rested, vice-captain Shreyas Iyer could be handed charge of the Indian team for the last two ODIs.
Along with the players, the coaching staff has also been split into two groups. Two coaches, out of head coach Gautam Gambhir, bowling coach Morne Morkel, assistant coach Sitanshu Kotak and fielding coach Subhadeep Ghosh, will stay with the team for the last two ODIs. The other two coaches will leave early for Wellington with the Test squad to prepare for the first Test.
The situation has raised serious questions about the planning of officials who drew up the cricket schedule. This ODI series was seen as extremely important for India ahead of the 2027 ODI World Cup. It is being said that this situation would not have arisen if the T20Is had been scheduled after the ODIs, since there is not much overlap between the T20I and Test squads. Most concerning is that the Indian team management was not consulted while finalising the schedule.
