India-Bangladesh white-ball series postponed; 2026 slot confirmed after fresh BCCI-BCB pact
India's tour of Bangladesh for a set of white ball matches has been postponed, with the BCCI and BCB confirming it will be played in 2026 instead.
The BCCI and the Bangladesh Cricket Board have announced that India’s scheduled white-ball tour of Bangladesh, originally slated for August 2025, has been postponed to 2026 following agreements reached by the two cricket boards.
The series will now be played 12 months later than originally scheduled, with the three ODI and three T20I matches being pushed to a more comfortable part of the cricket calendar for both teams.
In an official statement, the BCCI confirmed: “The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) have mutually agreed to defer the white-ball series, three ODIs and three Twenty20 Internationals, between Bangladesh and India in August 2025 to September 2026.”
"This decision has been reached following discussions between the two Boards, taking into account the international cricketing commitments and scheduling convenience of both teams,” continued the statement.
Indian fans continue to wait for return of Kohli and Rohit
The deferral in this tour was expected, with BCB president Aminul Islam having said recently that the BCCI was yet to confirm India’s involvement in this white ball tour. This follows after violent political upheaval in Bangladesh in recent months, which has led to a rise in tensions between the governments of the two neighbouring nations.
While India’s tour of Bangladesh has been scrapped, the Tigers are still set to host Pakistan for a three-match T20I series beginning on July 20.
The scrapping of the three match ODI series, originally set to take place between 17 and 23 August, means Indian fans will continue to have to wait to see the return of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma in an Indian jersey, both players having announced their retirements from the other two formats. The next time they will play for India will likely be against Australia, when India visit down under for a white-ball series in October.
However, the pushing of the Bangladesh series means an opportunity opens up for India’s Test squad to participate in the Duleep Trophy, scheduled to take place in mid to late August. With the fate of the subsequent Asia Cup also in the air, it would allow the BCCI to continue its renewed focus on international stars participating in domestic cricket.
