Darwin’s return to international competition is confirmed, and the India white-ball tour is set.

The staging of two men’s Twenty20 Internationals between Australia and South Africa in August and India eight-match 21-day white-ball tour prior to the men’s Ashes starting in late November have secured Darwin’s comeback as an international site for the first time in 17 years.

A few weeks after finishing a tour of the West Indies, Cricket Australia announced their home international schedule on Sunday. The men’s team will play three Twenty20 Internationals and three One-Day Internationals (ODIs) against South Africa in northern Australia, including Darwin, Cairns, and Mackay, the latter of which will host Australia’s men for the first time.

Australia’s match against Bangladesh in 2008 marked Darwin’s final international cricket match. With its comeback, the men’s team will compete in every state and territory in 2025–2026.

Due to the 150th anniversary Test at the MCG, the two-Test series between Northern Australia and Bangladesh was rescheduled from March 2027 to later in 2026. Darwin, Cairns, Mackay, and maybe Townsville are all in contention for one of those matches.

India, who lost 3-1 in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy this season, will begin a three-ODI and five-T20I tour in mid-October before the Ashes, whose schedule has already been finalised, begins in Perth on November 21.

The first ODI of the India series is scheduled on October 19 in Perth. To prevent a quick turnaround into Perth matches with long flights, it is best to start in the west. The Gold Coast in Queensland will host one of the five Twenty20 Internationals. Additionally, there is more time between the India white-ball matches and the Ashes opening than there is between the Pakistan and India series this season, which increases the likelihood that a full-strength home team will be chosen.

Australia will travel briefly over the Tasman in early October for a three-match T20I series against New Zealand before India arrives; the dates have not yet been finalised.

There will be another chance for multiformat players to compete in the BBL after the Ashes, which ends in early January. The dates for this window will be revealed later in the year, although it will essentially overlap with the 2024–25 season.

Though that will depend on how much lead-in the Australian hierarchy decides on, with an away series against Pakistan set to provide build-up, it is hoped that availability will last until the finals before the T20I squad starts preparing for the T20 World Cup, which will be held in India and Sri Lanka starting in mid-February. Due to a training camp in Dubai prior to the Sri Lanka Tests series, several international players were unable to attend the BBL finals this summer.

A home series in the middle of the year is anticipated as part of Australia A’s large schedule, which will be confirmed later. As part of a new reciprocal agreement for A visits spanning the men’s and women’s games, they are also scheduled to tour India; the BCCI will announce the dates.

Australia A matches against the England Lions, who will be on tour at the same time as the Ashes series begins, are also anticipated.

Australia Men 2025-26 home schedule

vs South Africa
August 10: 1st T20I, Darwin (N)
August 12: 2nd T20I, Darwin (N)
August 16: 3rd T20I, Cairns (N)
August 19: 1st ODI, Cairns (D/N)
August 22: 2nd ODI, Mackay (D/N)
August 24: 3rd ODI, Mackay (D/N)

vs India

October 19: 1st ODI, Perth Stadium (D/N)
October 23: 2nd ODI, Adelaide (D/N)
October 25: 3rd ODI, SCG (D/N)
October 29: 1st T20I, Canberra (N)
October 31: 2nd T20I, MCG (N)
November 2: 3rd T20I, Hobart (N)
November 6: 4th T20I, Gold Coast (N)
November 8: 5th T20I, Gabba (N)

Men’s Ashes (previously announced)
November 21-25: 1st Test, Perth Stadium
December 4-8: 2nd Test, Gabba (D/N)
December 17-21: 3rd Test, Adelaide
December 26-30: 4th Test, MCG
January 4-8, 5th Test, SCG