India’s five-match T20I series in New Zealand starts on Thursday, October 22, 2026, with the first match in Christchurch at 12:30 pm IST. The remaining games are on October 24, 27 and 30, and November 1, all listed at 12:30 pm IST. Indian viewers can follow the series through Sony’s coverage, with the current tour hub on Sony LIV and access through eligible Airtel Xstream Play subscriptions.
The T20s open a longer tour that also includes five ODIs and two Tests. The ICC published the itinerary on June 3, while Sony LIV’s current tour page now carries a T20 preview dated October 19 and a promotion for the 2026 visit. With the opening match two days away, the practical question for an Indian viewer is which afternoon to reserve and which existing subscription can actually open the live sport.
India vs New Zealand: T20I schedule, 2026
| Match | Date | City | Start (IST) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Oct 22 | Christchurch | 12:30 pm |
| 2 | Oct 24 | Christchurch | 12:30 pm |
| 3 | Oct 27 | Wellington | 12:30 pm |
| 4 | Oct 30 | Auckland | 12:30 pm |
| 5 | Nov 1 | Hamilton | 12:30 pm |
All start times are India Standard Time. 20:00 NZDT = 12:30 pm IST on the same date; fixtures can change.
Five T20s on an India-friendly afternoon schedule
The first two T20s are in Christchurch on October 22 and 24. The teams then move to Wellington on October 27, Auckland on October 30 and Hamilton on November 1. The schedule above keeps those five dates together so an ODI fixture later in November is not mistaken for part of the T20 series. Dates and cities agree between the ICC itinerary and the current Airtel tour listing.
The listed 20:00 New Zealand daylight-time start converts to 12:30 pm in India on the same calendar day. NZDT is UTC+13 and IST is UTC+5:30, a gap of seven and a half hours: 20:00 minus 7:30 is 12:30. Airtel’s schedule explicitly labels the Indian start time. Search widgets can display the browser’s own time zone, so retain the IST label when adding these matches to a calendar.
Sony’s rights and the current streaming route
New Zealand Cricket’s agreement with Sony Pictures Networks covers television and digital rights in India from May 1, 2024 to April 30, 2031 and expressly includes the 2026–27 India tour. Sony LIV’s current 2026 promotion and live-series page provide the relevant streaming destination. The tour page also contains older highlights and retrospective clips; those are useful viewing, but they are not proof that the upcoming fixture has started.
Airtel Xstream Play lists Sony LIV coverage through eligible subscriptions. Its route is to sign in to the service, open the Sony LIV content section and choose the match stream when available. The qualifying word matters: access depends on the package attached to the account and whether it includes the required live sports. The existence of an Airtel mobile connection or a generic entertainment bundle alone is not a promise of coverage.
Check the live-sports entitlement before match day
Before October 22, open the Sony LIV tour hub below and check the subscription attached to the account you intend to use. If using Airtel Xstream Play, check the bundle’s Sony LIV and live-sports inclusion before paying or assuming access. On match day, choose the current live fixture rather than a preview or an archive highlight.
For planning, the five 12:30 pm IST starts are the clearest reference. A changed fixture time or a change in the broadcaster’s available live listing would be the reason to adjust that plan. The later ODI and Test squads are a separate question, covered in our related report below. Keeping the T20 dates, time-zone label and account entitlement together makes the viewing plan useful without turning it into a prediction about the series result.
Dates and cities were checked against the ICC itinerary; IST times and bundle conditions against Airtel Xstream Play; rights and the current stream destination against NZC and Sony LIV. Checked 20 October 2026. Subscription eligibility depends on the account’s plan.
- ICC·June 3 tour schedule announcement ↗
- Airtel Xstream Play·India tour schedule and eligible Sony LIV access ↗
- NZC·Sony India rights May 2024–April 2031 ↗
- Sony LIV·2026 tour and live coverage ↗
- Sony LIV·2026 tour promotion ↗