Packed season, new venues await Team India

Six new Test centres, including Dharamsala and Ranchi, will host Tests matches for the first time during a packed home season for the Indian cricket team beginning with the New Zealand series in October-November.

A busy international schedule awaits the Indian team in the coming home season with 13 Test matches, eight One-Day Internationals and three T20 Internationals pencilled in by the BCCI.

Rajkot, Vizag, Pune, Dharamsala, Ranchi and Indore, upgraded as Test centres in November last year, will host five-day matches for the first time, BCCI secretary Ajay Shirke said in a statement.

New centres

The new centres would also host Tests this season against the visiting New Zealand, England, Australia and Bangladesh, the BCCI announced after the meeting of its Tour Programmes and Fixtures Committee here today.

The home season will start with three Test matches and five ODIs against New Zealand followed by five Test matches, three ODIs and as many T20Is against England.

vs Bangladesh

Bangladesh is slated to play a one-off Test match in India for the first time since the country got Test status.

vs New Zealand

The three Tests against New Zealand would be played at Indore, Kanpur and Kolkata while Dharamsala, Delhi, Mohali, Ranchi and Vizag are to host the five ODIs against the Kiwis.

vs England

Five Test matches against England would be held at Mohali, Rajkot, Mumbai, Vizag and Chennai, with the ODIs to be held at Pune, Cuttack and Kolkata and the three T20 games scheduled at Bengaluru, Nagpur and Kanpur.

vs Australia

Australia are to tour India in February, 2017 to play four Test matches to be played at Bengaluru, Dharamsala, Ranchi and Pune while Hyderabad would be the venue for the stand-alone Test match against Bangladesh.

All these venues will get matches subject to the condition that they have numbered the seats in the stadiums and fulfil all the guidelines laid down by the BCCI, said Shirke.