BCCI makes key venue changes for 2024–25 home season

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has announced several important updates to its 2024–25 home season schedule, including changes to venues for both men’s and women’s international matches, as well as ‘A’ team fixtures.

One of the major changes involves a venue swap for two key Test matches. The second Test of the India vs West Indies series, originally scheduled to be held at Eden Gardens in Kolkata this October, will now be played at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi.

In return, Kolkata will host the opening Test of the India vs South Africa series, which was initially planned for Delhi. The match will take place from November 14 to 18 at Eden Gardens.

The women's international schedule has also been revised. Chennai was originally set to host a three-match ODI series between India and Australia in September. However, the Tamil Nadu Cricket Association (TNCA) informed the BCCI that it could not host the games due to pitch and outfield renovations at the MA Chidambaram Stadium, in preparation for the 2026 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup.

As a result, the women’s ODIs have been moved to New Chandigarh and Delhi. The first two matches will be played at the new PCA Stadium in New Chandigarh, while the third ODI will be held at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi. The series is scheduled to run from September 14 to 20. New Chandigarh was awarded these fixtures in part to compensate for losing out as a host venue for the upcoming Women’s World Cup.

There are also changes to the India A vs South Africa A series. The three one-day games, previously set to take place at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru, have been shifted to the Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Rajkot. Bengaluru has been assigned a central role in hosting the Women’s World Cup, including the tournament opener and final—unless Pakistan qualifies, in which case the final will be played in Colombo.

Additionally, the BCCI’s newly developed Centre of Excellence on the outskirts of Bengaluru will make its debut as a first-class venue. The facility will host two four-day matches between India A and South Africa A from October 30 to November 10.