India’s cricket team didn’t make it to the World Test Championship (WTC) final in 2025. That happened after they lost to Australia 3-1 in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in 2024-25. But they’re getting ready for the next WTC season (2025-27) with a big five-match series against England.
The team is heading to England in June for this red-ball series. Word is, they’ll get at least two practice matches to warm up before the first match in Leeds on June 20.
According to the Indian Express, they’re planning an India A tour that starts in early June. A lot of the main Indian players are supposed to be involved in that.
Apparently, India A will play a four-day game against England Lions around June 4. Then, they’ll have a match playing against each other right before the first Test. There’s talk of another India A game against the Lions after that first Test too.
The IPL wraps up right before this Test series, so it sounds like all the usual Test players, especially the batters, will probably be in that first India A game.
Think back to the Test series with Australia last year. India A had a couple of practice matches then, too. Guys like KL Rahul, Devdutt Padikkal, and Dhruv Jurel played in the second one at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.
So, here are the dates and locations for the India vs. England Test matches:
| Test Match | Date | Venue |
|---|---|---|
| First Test | June 20-24 | Headingley, Leeds |
| Second Test | July 2-6 | Edgbaston |
| Third Test | July 10-14 | Lord’s |
| Fourth Test | July 23-27 | Old Trafford |
| Fifth Test | July 31 – August 4 | Kennington Oval, London |
The last time these two teams played a Test series (in 2024), India won 4-1. The last time they played a red-ball series in England, it ended in a 2-2 tie. It should be a really close contest this time around as well.
