BCCI wants a more balanced FTP with greater emphasis on player rest and acclimatisation before major overseas Test series.
SENA tours are the priority, with South Africa, England, New Zealand and Australia specifically mentioned.
Devajit Saikia says the number of matches in a year is a major challenge and that BCCI has instructed its FTP officials to seek changes.
BCCI’s FTP Plan Faces Time Crunch Ahead Of ICC Workshop In Dubai
The board wants more rest and acclimatisation before major SENA Test series, but international scheduling talks are less than three weeks away. Operations teams from cricket boards will meet in Dubai on September 22–23 to discuss international scheduling for the 2027–31 period.
Summary
The BCCI wishes to overcome one of the ongoing problems encountered by the Indian team when on overseas tours – namely, adjusting quickly enough before taking part in major Test series.
In order to achieve this, the board intends to advocate for a more balanced schedule in the forthcoming Future Tours Programme (FTP), focusing more on rest and acclimatisation, especially in preparation for the tours to South Africa, England, New Zealand and Australia (SENA).
The board will need to present its argument fairly soon since a workshop on the FTP is set to take place in Dubai on 22nd and 23rd September, at which operations teams from a number of the cricket boards will talk about the scheduling of international matches for the 2027–31 period, the BCCI being present as well, and interestingly having with it representatives from the top eight Associate nations.
"The challenge we are facing is that there are too many matches in the year, and that is why, in the next FTP, we will do certain things and take certain measures,” BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia said on Thursday after a review meeting of the Indian team.
“We have instructed our FTP people, who will be meeting very soon at various international forums, that our FTP should be scheduled in such a way that there is proper rest for the players, as well as some kind of acclimatisation or friendly matches before any major series in SENA countries," added Saikia
More Multilateral Series
According to Cricbuzz, the next FTP will see a surge of multilateral series, or, simply put, a series with more than two teams involved. Amid the growing concern over the profitability of organising a bilateral series, multilateral series might rekindle fans' interest.
However, tri-series and quadrangular series have gone out of fashion lately. Since the 2019 World Cup, only one tri-series has been played. The series involved New Zealand, South Africa and Pakistan, and was played ahead of the 2025 Champions Trophy. India last played a tri-series in 2018, involving Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.
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