Australia’s men are set for an abbreviated home season in 2026-27, which will include four Tests in one month against New Zealand. The series is part of an 11-month period in which up to 21 Test matches could be played from August this year.
Cricket Australia (CA) has confirmed the dates for the trans-Tasman series, with New Zealand set to play Perth (December 9-13), Adelaide (December 17-21), Melbourne (December 26-30) and Sydney (January 4-8).
This will mark New Zealand’s first three-Test series since 1999.
A demanding schedule for the men’s team is expected to be shaped by three overseas tours to South Africa, India and England.
However, CA’s latest picture release has locked in more details for a season that will begin with the previously confirmed Tests against Bangladesh in Northern Australia and end with the 150th anniversary match against England at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG).
The original plan for the New Zealand men’s tour was three Tests, but a fourth was added following the introduction of the 150th Anniversary Test.
The change saw Bangladesh’s visit moved from March 2027 to August, while the proposed series against Afghanistan was canceled due to CA’s policy of not playing bilateral cricket with the nation.
New Zealand were scheduled to host India immediately before crossing the Tasman, and with Australia set to depart for India almost straight after the series, the four Tests were effectively squeezed into the same window as the three matches originally planned.
The result is a tight itinerary with two four-day turns and a three-day break between matches, requiring some changes: the Perth Test starts on Wednesday, and the New Year’s Test at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) runs from Monday to Friday.
This schedule is expected to put significant pressure on the fast bowlers from both sides.
During the recent Ashes series, Mitchell Starc and Scott Boland, along with England’s Braydon Carrs, managed to play in all five Tests, although that workload was reduced by the two-dayer in Perth and Melbourne.
New Zealand are not expected to play a warm-up game in Australia, having finished their series against India, and Bangladesh have not requested a match ahead of their visit in August, although that could change.
Before hosting New Zealand, Australia’s men will face England in eight white-ball matches – three One-Day Internationals (ODIs) and five Twenty20 Internationals (T20Is) – 12 days after their return from South Africa.
England will return in March for the day-night 150th Test at the MCG.
Australia’s men will return to international action in late May with a one-day series in Pakistan followed by the Indian Premier League (IPL), followed by a white-ball tour of Bangladesh.
After playing nine scheduled ODIs against Pakistan, Bangladesh and England this year, Australia will have six more 50-over matches before the 2027 ODI World Cup in South Africa.
In the women’s programme, Australia face Bangladesh in October and New Zealand in February and March, with an ODI series in Sri Lanka in December.
Cricket South Africa on Friday confirmed the multi-format series in March and April 2027, which will include a Test match.
Bangladesh Women’s visit in October – their first bilateral series in Australia – will be two-venue only, with three ODIs at Allan Border Field and three T20Is at North Sydney Oval.
New Zealand women will play at North Sydney Oval, Manuka Oval, Citipower Center in Melbourne and Karen Roldan Oval in Adelaide.
It is to be noted that there will be no women’s matches in major stadiums next season. This season, India played T20 matches at SCG and Adelaide Oval.
Australia’s 2026-27 home schedule
Men’s Test series against Bangladesh
- First Test: 13-17 August, Marrara Stadium, Darwin, 10am
- Second Test: 22-26 August, Great Barrier Reef Stadium, Mackay, 10am
Women’s ODI series against Bangladesh
- Friday 9 October: Allan Border Field, Brisbane, 1.50pm (D/N)
- Sunday 11 October: Allan Border Field, Brisbane, 1.50pm (D/N)
- Wednesday 14 October: Allan Border Field, Brisbane, 1.50pm (D/N)
Women’s T20 series against Bangladesh
- Sunday 18 October: North Sydney Oval, Sydney, 7.15pm (N)
- Tuesday 20 October: North Sydney Oval, Sydney, 7.15pm (N)
- Thursday 22 October: North Sydney Oval, Sydney, 7.15pm (N)
Men’s ODI series against England
- Friday 13 November: Perth Stadium, Perth, 11.30am (T/Twilight)
- Sunday 15 November: Adelaide Oval, Adelaide, 2pm (D/N)
- Wednesday 18 November: Bellerive Oval, Hobart, 2.30pm (D/N)
Men’s T20 series against England
- Saturday 21 November: MCG, Melbourne, 7.15pm (N)
- Tuesday 24 November: Gold Coast Stadium, Gold Coast, 6.15pm (N)
- Friday 27 November: Gabba, Brisbane, 6.15pm (N)
- Sunday November 29: SCG, Sydney, 7.15pm (N)
- Wednesday 2 December: Manuka Oval, Canberra, 7.15pm (N)
Men’s Test series against New Zealand
First Test: December 9-13, Perth Stadium, Perth, 10.20 am
Second Test: 17-21 December, Adelaide Oval, Adelaide, 11 am
Third Test: 26-30 December, MCG, Melbourne, 10.30 am
Fourth Test: 4-8 January, SCG, Sydney, 10.30 am
Women’s T20 series against New Zealand
- Sunday 21 February: North Sydney Oval, Sydney, 1.30pm (T)
- Wednesday 24 February: Manuka Oval, Canberra, 7.15pm (N)
- Friday 26 February: Citipower Centre, Melbourne, 7.15pm (N)
Women’s ODI series against New Zealand
- Monday 1 March: Citipower Centre, Melbourne, 2.50pm (D/N)
- Friday 5 March: Karen Roldan Oval, Adelaide, 2.20pm (D/N)
- Sunday March 7: Karen Roldan Oval, Adelaide, 2.20pm (D/N)
150th Anniversary Test Match