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Vadodara, a city with deep cricketing roots but long absent from the international calendar, is set to roar back to life as it hosts the opening ODI between India and New Zealand on January 11, 2026.
Notably, this will mark the city's first men's international game in over 15 years, and the first at the newly built Kotambi Stadium, which is a venue that has already tested the waters by hosting women’s internationals and the 2025 Women’s Premier League matches.
The return is significant not just for the city but for Indian cricket at large. The ODI will serve as the kickoff to a high-stakes white-ball series, New Zealand’s first assignment against India since their loss in the Champions Trophy 2025 final earlier this year.
Tour Schedule
According to the BCCI, the tour itinerary features three ODIs in Vadodara (Jan 11), Rajkot (Jan 14), and Indore (Jan 18), followed by five T20Is in Nagpur (Jan 21), Raipur (Jan 23), Guwahati (Jan 25), Visakhapatnam (Jan 28), and Thiruvananthapuram (Jan 31).
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The Hardik Pandya-Vadodara Connection
Vadodara’s inclusion is particularly special for local icon Hardik Pandya. The 2024 T20 World Cup-winning all-rounder will, for the first time, play an international match in front of a home crowd.
While the Mumbai Indians skipper was born in Choryasi near Surat, Hardik Pandya and his brother Krunal Pandya grew up in Vadodara and received their early cricket training there.
Meanwhile, the series also holds immense tactical value for India, as these will likely be their final T20I outings before co-hosting the 2026 T20 World Cup with Sri Lanka. It offers selectors and team management one last opportunity to fine-tune the squad and strategies before the global tournament.
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A Stadium's Statement and a City’s Revival
Built to modern specifications, Kotambi Stadium has quietly emerged as a reliable host for women’s cricket, but now steps into the men's arena. The ground has quickly built a resume with international and franchise matches, and hosting the first men’s ODI since 2010, coincidentally also against New Zealand, marks a symbolic revival for Vadodara as a venue capable of high-profile assignments.
In that 2010 fixture, Gautam Gambhir, now India’s head coach, scored a century, while a young Virat Kohli made an unbeaten 63, a link that adds historical resonance to the city’s return to the men’s international stage.
