T20 WC 2026 Warm-Up Fixtures Tickets and Broadcast

T20 World Cup 2026 begins with a 6-day warm-up window between May 28 and June 2 — 14 fixtures distributed across four practice venues, mostly Bengaluru's Chinnaswamy, Hyderabad's Uppal, and the Sinhalese Sports Club in Colombo. ICC has classified the warm-ups as official, which means they will appear on team season records, but the competitive weight is light — squads use them to settle XIs, pace bowlers to build full-spell endurance, and travelling reserves to get a first taste of the conditions. For fans, the warm-up window is the cheapest way to see the cricket live, and the broadcast policy is mixed.

The Full Warm-Up Schedule

Date	Match	Venue	First Ball IST
May 28	India vs Bangladesh	Bengaluru	7:30 PM
May 28	Australia vs USA	Hyderabad	7:30 PM
May 29	England vs Sri Lanka	Colombo	7:00 PM
May 29	Pakistan vs Ireland	Hyderabad	7:30 PM
May 30	New Zealand vs Afghanistan	Bengaluru	7:30 PM
May 30	South Africa vs Netherlands	Colombo	7:00 PM
May 31	West Indies vs Scotland	Hyderabad	7:30 PM
May 31	India vs Nepal	Bengaluru	7:30 PM
Jun 1	Australia vs Bangladesh	Hyderabad	7:30 PM
Jun 1	Pakistan vs USA	Hyderabad	3:30 PM
Jun 2	England vs Afghanistan	Bengaluru	7:30 PM
Jun 2	NZ vs Ireland	Colombo	7:00 PM
Jun 2	South Africa vs Scotland	Hyderabad	7:30 PM
Jun 2	West Indies vs Netherlands	Bengaluru	3:30 PM

Broadcast Coverage

The warm-up window is partial-broadcast. Marquee fixtures (India, Australia, England, Pakistan vs full-member opposition) are televised; minor warm-ups (Scotland-Netherlands, Ireland-USA-style) typically stream only on ICC.tv.

Match Type	Broadcast	OTT
India fixtures	Sony Sports / JioHotstar	JioHotstar
Marquee full-members	Sony / JioHotstar	JioHotstar
Other fixtures	ICC.tv (free global)	ICC.tv
UK distribution	Sky Sports (selected)	NOW Sports (selected)

ICC.tv carries every warm-up fixture globally for free as part of its event-coverage policy. This is the rare window where every T20 WC fixture is technically free-to-watch globally.

Ticket Policy — Practice-Match Pricing

Warm-up tickets are priced at 30-50% of group-stage face values:

Tier	Group Stage Price (INR)	Warm-Up Price (INR)
Premium reserved	6000	2500
Stand reserved	1500	600
General admission	500	200
Junior	300	100

Bengaluru and Hyderabad fixtures are sold via BookMyShow / KSCA and HCA portals respectively. Colombo warm-ups are sold via SLC's online ticketing portal at LKR 1,500-4,500 tier pricing.

Squad Base Venue Map

Team	Base City	Travel For Group Stage
India	Bengaluru	All India fixtures multi-venue
Australia	Hyderabad	Hyderabad / Mumbai / Chennai
England	Colombo	Colombo / Mumbai
Pakistan	Hyderabad	Hyderabad / Chennai
New Zealand	Bengaluru	Bengaluru / Pune
Sri Lanka	Colombo	Colombo (host)
South Africa	Colombo	Colombo / Pune
West Indies	Bengaluru	Bengaluru / Hyderabad
Afghanistan	Bengaluru	Bengaluru / Pune
Bangladesh	Hyderabad	Hyderabad / Kolkata

Why The Warm-Up Window Matters

Three structural reasons. First, this is the only window where teams get their full chosen XI in match conditions ahead of group fixtures — the T20 WC 2026 final-15 squad debate covers the contention; warm-ups settle it. Second, this is when bowling pairs (Bumrah-Siraj, Starc-Hazlewood) build full-spell rhythm. Third, this is when the T20 WC 2026 dark-horse teams audition their tactical packages.

For fans, the warm-up is the affordable way to see the cricket — the marquee India fixture against Bangladesh at Bengaluru on May 28 will sell out, but the second-tier warm-ups (England-Afghanistan at Bengaluru, Pakistan-Ireland at Hyderabad) typically retain availability.

What To Expect From The Warm-Ups

The competitive intensity will be lower than group-stage matches but higher than 2024 USA-WI warm-ups, because the marquee opening week of the tournament rewards an XI that is in form. Squads will rest one or two senior bowlers across the two warm-ups; some will hide their first-choice pair from broadcast altogether. Expect 165-185 first-innings totals, occasional collapses on freshly-laid practice pitches, and a flexible approach to declaration of innings. Captains will use the warm-ups as live scouting against teams they meet two weeks later in the T20 WC 2026 group fixtures.

The warm-ups close on June 2. The opening fixture of the tournament is on June 5 at Eden Gardens.