In a landmark development for women’s cricket, Lord’s Cricket Ground will host its first-ever women’s Test match in 2026 when England takes on India in what promises to be a defining moment for the sport. The one-off Test is scheduled for July 10, 2026, and will mark a significant step forward in the global visibility and growth of women’s cricket.
England vs India Women’s Tour Dates Confirmed
The two cricketing giants will not only clash in a historic red-ball match at Lord’s, but they will also compete in a three-match T20I series. The matches are scheduled as follows:
- May 28 – Chelmsford
- May 30 – Bristol
- June 2 – Taunton
ECB Chief Praises “Special” Season for Women’s Cricket
Richard Gould, Chief Executive Officer of the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), expressed great enthusiasm about what’s to come for international cricket in 2026.
“𝑾𝒆 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒚 𝒆𝒙𝒄𝒊𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒖𝒏𝒗𝒆𝒊𝒍 𝒂 𝒔𝒑𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒂𝒄𝒖𝒍𝒂𝒓 𝒔𝒆𝒂𝒔𝒐𝒏 𝒐𝒇 𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒏𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒂𝒍 𝒄𝒓𝒊𝒄𝒌𝒆𝒕 𝒊𝒏 2026,” 𝒔𝒂𝒊𝒅 𝑮𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅. “𝑾𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒍𝒅-𝒄𝒍𝒂𝒔𝒔 𝒓𝒊𝒗𝒂𝒍 𝒕𝒆𝒂𝒎𝒔 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒑𝒆𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒂𝒕 𝒊𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒊𝒄 𝒗𝒆𝒏𝒖𝒆𝒔 𝒂𝒄𝒓𝒐𝒔𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒕𝒓𝒚, 𝒇𝒂𝒏𝒔 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒃𝒆 𝒂𝒃𝒍𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒔𝒆𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒚 𝒃𝒆𝒔𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒎𝒆𝒏’𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒘𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒏’𝒔 𝒈𝒂𝒎𝒆.”
Gould emphasised that the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup, set to be held in England for the first time since 2009, will be a landmark event.
“𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒉𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒍𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 2026 𝒔𝒆𝒂𝒔𝒐𝒏 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒖𝒏𝒅𝒐𝒖𝒃𝒕𝒆𝒅𝒍𝒚 𝒃𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑰𝑪𝑪 𝑾𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒏’𝒔 𝑻20 𝑾𝒐𝒓𝒍𝒅 𝑪𝒖𝒑… 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒓𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝒂𝒇𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕, 𝒘𝒆’𝒓𝒆 𝒅𝒆𝒍𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝑳𝒐𝒓𝒅’𝒔 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒂𝒍𝒔𝒐 𝒉𝒐𝒔𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒇𝒊𝒓𝒔𝒕-𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝑬𝒏𝒈𝒍𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑾𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒏’𝒔 𝑻𝒆𝒔𝒕 𝒎𝒂𝒕𝒄𝒉,” 𝒉𝒆 𝒂𝒅𝒅𝒆𝒅.
India Looks to Repeat Past Dominance
England last played a women’s Test at home in 2023, where they lost to Australia at Trent Bridge. The upcoming clash at Lord’s will return to the traditional four-day format commonly used in women’s Tests.
India will arrive with confidence, having thrashed England by 347 runs in their most recent Test meeting. Deepti Sharma was the standout performer, delivering an all-round masterclass to seal the Player of the Match award.
With momentum from that dominant win and history waiting to be made at Lord’s, the 2026 contest is poised to be a thrilling spectacle for fans and a milestone for women’s cricket.
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