Sri Lanka tour of India, 2026

Tour Overview

Sri Lanka travel to India in December 2026 for six white-ball internationals packed into fifteen days. Three One Day Internationals open the tour on 13 December, followed by three T20 Internationals that close it on 27 December. The 50-over leg moves from Delhi to Bengaluru and Ahmedabad, and the T20Is go to Rajkot, Cuttack and Pune, so the series crosses the north, south, west and east of the country in two weeks.

On the field it pits India, crowned T20 world champions for a second straight time in March 2026, against a Sri Lankan side rebuilding under new white-ball captain Kusal Mendis with the 2027 ODI World Cup on the horizon. Off it, a travelling fan gets day-night ODIs that start in the warm afternoon and finish under lights, floodlit T20Is, a Christmas Eve match in Cuttack, and December weather that is the most comfortable of the year across most of India.

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About the Tournament

The tour is a bilateral series organised by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), hosting Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC). It was confirmed in March 2026 as part of India's 2026-27 home season, which also brings West Indies, Zimbabwe and Australia to the country. In practice it is two separate contests, each with its own trophy: a three-match ODI series and a three-match T20I series. There is no final; each series goes to the side that wins more of its three games.

All three ODIs are day-night games starting at 2:00 PM local time (08:30 GMT), so the second innings is played under lights. The T20Is are night matches starting at 7:00 PM local time (13:30 GMT). Two or three rest days separate every fixture. With the ODI World Cup in southern Africa less than a year away, both teams will treat the 50-over games as serious preparation rather than a box-ticking exercise.

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Tournament History

India and Sri Lanka have met in ODIs more often than any other two nations, well over 170 times. Sri Lanka won the first of those meetings, at the 1979 World Cup in England, and India's first win came at Amritsar in 1982. India lead the ODI head-to-head by a wide margin, and they have won more than two-thirds of the T20Is between the sides.

The last time Sri Lanka toured India, in January 2023, the hosts took the T20Is 2-1 and swept the ODIs 3-0, finishing with a 317-run win in Thiruvananthapuram that remains the largest margin in men's ODI history. Sri Lanka answered at home in August 2024, winning an ODI series against India 2-0 for the first time since 1997 as their spinners took 27 of the 30 Indian wickets to fall. The most recent meeting, at the 2025 Asia Cup in Dubai, ended in a tie on 202 apiece after a maiden T20I hundred from Pathum Nissanka, with India winning the Super Over.

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Host Nation

India

Few countries live cricket like India. International matches sell out stadiums of every size, the IPL fills the spring calendar, and in March 2026 the national side won the T20 World Cup in Ahmedabad to become the first team to defend the title and the first to lift it at home.

December is peak travel season. The monsoon is long gone, the south and west are warm and dry, and the north turns crisp, with cool mornings and occasional winter fog in Delhi. For Sri Lankan supporters it is a short flight across the water; for fans flying in from the UK, the Gulf or Australia, it is a chance to pair cricket with a proper Indian holiday.

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Schedule & Key Dates

The tour opens with the first ODI at Delhi's Arun Jaitley Stadium on Sunday 13 December. The second ODI follows at Bengaluru's M. Chinnaswamy Stadium on Wednesday 16 December, and the 50-over series ends at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Saturday 19 December. Every ODI starts at 2:00 PM local time.

The T20Is begin a short hop away in Rajkot, at the Niranjan Shah Stadium, on Tuesday 22 December. The second is in Cuttack's Barabati Stadium on Christmas Eve, Thursday 24 December, and the tour finishes at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Pune on Sunday 27 December. All three T20Is start at 7:00 PM local time.

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Venues & Host Cities

Arun Jaitley Stadium, Delhi

Known for most of its life as the Feroz Shah Kotla, this is one of India's oldest international grounds, staging its first Test in 1948. It holds about 35,000 and fittingly hosted its first ever ODI between these same two teams in 1982. The ground sits on the edge of Old Delhi, a short ride from the Red Fort, Jama Masjid and Raj Ghat. The ground is undergoing pitch, outfield and drainage work this season, and the BCCI confirmed in October that the opening ODI remains in Delhi.

M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru

Set beside Cubbon Park in the heart of Bengaluru, the Chinnaswamy is famous for short boundaries, quick outfields and some of the loudest crowds in the country. Capacity is now capped at roughly 35,000 after safety upgrades, and this season marks its return to international cricket for the first time since October 2024. Bengaluru's mild December climate, its pub and craft-brewery scene around MG Road and Church Street, and the palaces and gardens of Mysuru within a day trip make it an easy city to linger in.

Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad

With 132,000 seats, the rebuilt Motera ground is the largest cricket stadium in the world. It staged the 2023 ODI World Cup final and, in March 2026, saw India beat New Zealand by 96 runs to win the T20 World Cup. Beyond the ground, Ahmedabad's old walled city is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the Sabarmati Ashram tells the story of Gandhi's years here, and the riverfront is at its best on a winter evening.

Niranjan Shah Stadium, Rajkot

Rajkot's 28,000-seat ground at Khandheri, renamed in 2024 after veteran administrator Niranjan Shah, is home to Saurashtra cricket and one of the country's solar-powered stadiums. It has a strong history with this fixture: in January 2023, Suryakumar Yadav hit an unbeaten 112 from 51 balls here as India beat Sri Lanka by 91 runs to win the T20I series. Rajkot is also a gateway to Saurashtra, with Gir National Park, home of the Asiatic lion, and the coastal temples of Somnath and Dwarka all reachable by road.

Barabati Stadium, Cuttack

Built in 1958, the 45,000-capacity Barabati is one of India's older international venues and a ground with deep India-Sri Lanka roots: it hosted its first Test between these two sides in 1987, and in December 2017 India bowled Sri Lanka out for 87 here to win a T20I by 93 runs. Cuttack is a city of silver filigree work and river views, twinned with Bhubaneswar, Odisha's temple capital. The Sun Temple at Konark and the beaches and Jagannath Temple at Puri are within easy reach, which makes this Christmas Eve fixture a strong anchor for an east-coast holiday.

Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium, Pune

Opened in 2012 at Gahunje, beside the Mumbai-Pune Expressway, the MCA Stadium seats about 42,700 in a deep bowl designed by Hopkins Architects. It hosted ODI World Cup matches in 2023, and it was here in January 2023 that Dasun Shanaka's all-round display gave Sri Lanka a 16-run T20I win. Pune itself mixes Maratha history at Shaniwar Wada and the Aga Khan Palace with a lively café scene, and the hill fort at Sinhagad and the Lonavala ghats are short drives away.

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The Teams

India

India arrive as the T20 world champions, having won the 2026 final with a record 255 for 5 in a World Cup final. For the home series against West Indies earlier this season, Shubman Gill led the ODI side, with Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli both in the squad, while Shreyas Iyer captained the T20I team. India won that ODI series 2-1, and the T20Is finished level at 2-2 after a washout in Bengaluru. Squads for the Sri Lanka series have not yet been named.

Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka handed the ODI and T20I captaincy to wicketkeeper-batter Kusal Mendis in May 2026 after a disappointing T20 World Cup, and he led both sides on their September tour of England. Their strength is spin, the same weapon that won them the 2024 series: Wanindu Hasaranga, Maheesh Theekshana and Dunith Wellalage can strangle any batting line-up, while Pathum Nissanka, Kamindu Mendis and Charith Asalanka carry the batting and Dushmantha Chameera and Eshan Malinga bring genuine pace. Sri Lanka's touring squads will be confirmed closer to December.

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Why Attend

This is a chance to see the world's best T20 side at home, in front of the crowds that powered its World Cup win, against an opponent that has proved it can beat India when the ball turns. Six matches in six different stadiums means six different atmospheres: the history of Delhi, the noise of Bengaluru, the sheer scale of a packed Ahmedabad, and three night games where dew, spin and big hitting all come into play.

The timing helps too. A floodlit T20I on Christmas Eve, a series finale two days after Christmas and the chance to roll straight into New Year in India make this a natural festive-season trip.

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Planning Your Trip

The travel window runs from about 11 to 28 December. Delhi, Bengaluru, Ahmedabad and Pune all have airports with good domestic links, Cuttack is reached through Bhubaneswar's airport, and Rajkot is a few hours by road from Ahmedabad, so ODI fans can fly into Delhi and follow the series south and west. Christmas and New Year are the busiest weeks of the year for Indian hotels and flights, so booking early matters.

Most visitors need a visa, and many nationalities can apply online for an Indian e-Visa before travel. The currency is the Indian rupee. Pack light layers: Delhi evenings are cold and its mornings can be foggy, while Bengaluru, Ahmedabad and Pune stay pleasant through the day and cool after dark.

CrickBuster packages take the logistics off your hands. Depending on the package, they include guaranteed official match tickets in general or hospitality seating, flights, accommodation, airport and stadium transfers, and excursions and sightseeing in each host city, from Old Delhi and the Ahmedabad heritage walk to Gir, Konark or the forts around Pune. Meet-and-greet and fan experiences are added where available, so you can focus on the cricket and the trip around it.