ICC FTP 2025-29 India Complete Schedule — Tests, ODIs, T20Is Decoded

India's ICC FTP 2025-29 schedule sets a numerical record. Forty-two Tests, 38 ODIs and 71 T20Is across the four-year cycle. The total bilateral match count is 151. The India schedule is the most match-dense FTP allocation for any Full Member. Add the franchise league windows and the build-up windows for two T20 World Cups, an ODI World Cup, the Champions Trophy and an Asia Cup, and the calendar is at its commercial ceiling.

The Test allocation

Forty-two Tests across four years is roughly 10-11 Tests per year. The split: 22 home Tests, 20 away Tests. The home Test allocation includes a three-Test West Indies series in November 2025, the four-Test India-South Africa series in late 2026, the three-Test India-New Zealand series in early 2027, and the home stretch of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2027 if hosted in India. The away Test allocation is led by the five-Test India tour England in 2028.

The ODI allocation

Thirty-eight ODIs include the bilateral series build-up windows for the Champions Trophy 2029 and the next ODI World Cup. The two largest ODI blocks are a five-match home series against Australia in late 2027 and a five-match away series in South Africa in mid-2028. The Champions Trophy 2029 itself sits inside the cycle and adds another seven-to-eight ODIs depending on India's progress.

The T20I allocation

Seventy-one T20Is is the dominant format share. The split includes home T20I series against Pakistan in early 2027 (likely in a neutral venue under the existing protocol), Australia in late 2027, England in summer 2028, and the home T20 World Cup 2026 itself. The T20I count is heavy because of two World Cups inside the cycle.

The 2026 home year

India's 2026 home year is built around the T20 World Cup, scheduled for late 2026. The pre-World Cup window includes a four-match T20I series against Australia in October and a three-match T20I series against South Africa in early November. The build-up is procedurally protected and is the most important T20 World Cup preparation window in India's FTP history.

The 2027 Asia Cup year

2027 is the Asia Cup year. India will play the Asia Cup in August-September 2027 at a venue still being finalised (Tashkent and Sri Lanka are the leading candidates). The format will be 8 or 10 teams depending on the ACC compromise outcome. The Asia Cup is followed by a home five-match ODI series against Australia.

The 2028 England tour

The five-Test India tour England in summer 2028 is the most commercially weighted tour of the cycle. The series will be played across five English venues with a four-week duration. The Test series is followed by a five-match T20I bilateral and a three-match ODI series. The tour total is 13 matches, which is the largest single-tour allocation of the cycle.

The 2028-29 home year

The 2028-29 home year is built around the back-to-back two-Test West Indies series and the Champions Trophy 2029 build-up. The home season includes the five-match T20I bilateral against England in late 2028 and the Champions Trophy itself in February-March 2029. The Champions Trophy is the cycle's commercial finale.

The back-to-back risks

Three back-to-back windows are flagged in the FTP. One, the December 2026 Test series against South Africa followed immediately by the January 2027 home Test series against New Zealand. Two, the October-November 2027 Asia Cup followed by the home ODI series against Australia. Three, the November 2028 T20I bilateral against England followed by the Champions Trophy build-up.

The franchise league overlap

The IPL window for the cycle is locked at 65 days per year through 2027 and may expand to 80 days from 2028. The IPL window overlaps partly with the ICC's May Test window, which is why CWI's May home Test series gets carriage cover from JioHotstar in the broadcast rights consortium. The franchise overlap is procedurally managed.

The workload pattern

India's top players will play roughly 38-42 matches per year across formats, before franchise commitments. The workload is at the upper end of sustainable. The rotation policy will need to be applied actively, particularly to fast bowlers. The Test specialists will see fewer match days because the T20I count dominates the volume.

What this means for fans

For Indian cricket fans, the practical answer is that the 2025-29 cycle delivers cricket every two-to-three weeks across the four years. The cycle includes home and away series against every Tier-1 nation, two T20 World Cups, an ODI World Cup, and the Champions Trophy. The commercial peak is the home T20 World Cup 2026. The cricket peak is the five-Test India tour England in 2028.

What to watch next: whether the IPL window extension from 65 days to 80 days from 2028 onwards is signed at the ICC AGM, because that decision shifts the back end of the India home Test season and reshapes the workload arithmetic for the second half of the cycle.

Related coverage

• the 2026-27 international calendar
• WTC Final cycle
• Icc Ftp 2025 29 Pakistan
• Icc Ftp 2025 29 England