Australia skip warm-up matches before India Test series
Australia will prioritise an extended camp over tour matches before the five-Test series in India.
Australia won't play a warm-up match before the five-Test Border-Gavaskar Trophy in India early next year. Coach Andrew McDonald confirmed the team will instead hold an extended pre-series camp to acclimatise to Indian conditions.
The approach follows recent subcontinental tours. They trained in Dubai before the 2025 Sri Lanka series and held a camp in Alur ahead of the 2023 Border-Gavaskar Trophy. This time, the shorter gap between the New Zealand Tests and the India series has forced a different plan.
Players likely to feature in India but not against New Zealand could begin preparations earlier in Australia. McDonald said the focus will be on location and individual workload management rather than match practice.
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The real test of this plan won't show until the first Test in Chennai, when players who've only faced bowling machines and nets try to adjust to India's spinners on wearing pitches.