Australia-India ODI moved to Hobart after Melbourne floodlight delay

Originally planned as a day-night match at Melbourne’s Junction Oval on March 1, Cricket Australia has rescheduled the third women’s ODI between Australia and India of the 2026 tour to Hobart’s Bellerive Oval. The change was brought about by the tight schedule and delays in installing new floodlights at Junction Oval.

Due to the Women’s Premier League (WPL) relocating to January and the ODI World Cup later in the year, the Australian home window for the multi-format India tour was moved to February–March. Three Twenty20 Internationals (T20Is) were initially scheduled for mid-February, followed by three One-Day Internationals (ODIs) on February 24, February 27, and March 1, as well as a day-night Test in Perth in early March.

Cricket Australia had previously expected lights to be finished a few weeks prior to

Notably, the new floodlights at the Junction Oval won’t be finished in time. The ground could not safely or practically host an international under lights on the planned date due to installation and commissioning work, as well as the related spectator access during construction. A few weeks prior to the match, Cricket Australia had expected the lights to be finished.

The organisers decided that moving the March 1 match to a daylight start was not a practical option because of the schedule’s restriction of only one day between the second and third ODIs. Peter Roach, chief of operations for Cricket Australia, said the team was disappointed to lose a Melbourne international this season and emphasised that they had been anticipating the first floodlit international at the Junction Oval.

“We regret that there won’t be a women’s international match in Melbourne this season and that we have to shift this match from Junction Oval. According to ESPNcricinfo, Peter Roach, CA’s head of cricket operations and scheduling, stated, “We were looking forward to celebrating the first international match under lights at the ground and anticipated the Junction Oval lights would be installed several weeks prior to this fixture.”

In the meantime, Hobart now hosts the series’ back-to-back ODIs, eliminating the need for teams, officials, and broadcasters to arrange travel and lodging. Cricket Australia has announced that fans who bought tickets for the Junction Oval match will get their money back. In the meanwhile, Junction Oval will continue to hold domestic daytime cricket matches, including the Melbourne Stars and Renegades WBBL, as scheduled, instead of hosting international night matches until the lighting installation is finished.

Updated schedule for the 2026 India Women’s Tour of Australia: