Australia and Zimbabwe are set for a short three-match ODI series in September 2026, bolted onto Australia’s already-scheduled trip to South Africa. The stopover, expected to be confirmed soon, will take place in Harare and possibly Bulawayo. Victoria Falls’ new 10,000-seat venue is thought to be running behind schedule, so it is unlikely to be used.
The agreement ends an eight-year stretch without Australian men’s cricket on Zimbabwean soil – the last visit was the 2018 T20 tri-series that involved Pakistan – and it also hands Pat Cummins’ side useful match time in southern African conditions before the 2027 50-over World Cup, to be co-hosted by Zimbabwe, South Africa and Namibia.
What it does not do is revive Test cricket between the two nations. Australia’s calendar from mid-2026 to the 2027 Ashes is stacked – at least 19 Tests are pencilled in – and Cricket Australia has opted for white-ball fixtures only. That decision means the Test gap, already stretching back to October 2003, will lengthen further. Back then, Matthew Hayden peeled off 380 in Perth, briefly the highest individual Test score.
Zimbabwe Cricket (ZC) had lobbied for at least a single Test. Chair Tavengwa Mukuhlani, speaking recently, made no secret of that preference: “We are a Test nation, so playing the top countries like Australia and England at home will go a long way to making this format popular in Zimbabwe,” he told ESPNcricinfo. He added: “Playing against the best teams will help our players develop their skills in Test cricket. Understandably Australia wants to prepare for the World Cup, but hopefully we can play them in Test cricket in the future.”
ZC hopes England might fill part of that red-ball void. The ECB is weighing up a one-off Test at Victoria Falls at the back end of England’s 2026-27 South African visit. England and Zimbabwe ended a 22-year Test hiatus last May with a four-day match at Trent Bridge; administrators on both sides have suggested there is appetite for more.
From Australia’s perspective, the ODIs in Zimbabwe should feel like tidy preparation. Travelling from Johannesburg up to Harare is a short hop, the pitches tend to be on the slower side – something not always available at home – and it offers a chance to stress-test combinations before a World Cup on similar surfaces. Assistant coach Daniel Vettori, speaking earlier this year about warm-ups in the region, noted the value of “getting used to the rhythms of day-games, slightly lower bounce, and how reverse swing behaves”. Those comments, while not specific to Zimbabwe, underline why the series makes sense.
For Zimbabwe, the practical pay-off is straightforward: three fixtures against a top-ranked side provide broadcast income, gate receipts and, perhaps more importantly, a yardstick for a young group desperate for consistent, top-level exposure. Sikandar Raza and Sean Williams remain the heartbeat of the current XI, but the next crop – players such as Wessly Madhevere and Blessing Muzarabani – have had limited chances against Tier-1 opponents in their own backyard.
There is also a wider structural piece in play. The ICC has floated expanding the next World Test Championship cycle to all 12 Full Members. If that happens, incentives will increase for established nations to schedule red-ball matches against Zimbabwe, Afghanistan and Ireland. Administrators in Harare see that as a window to secure the kind of marquee Tests that have eluded them for two decades.
In the shorter term, though, attention shifts to the exact dates and venues for those three ODIs. Early indications are a compact eight-day window in late September 2026, slotting neatly between Australia’s final tour match in South Africa and the players’ departure for home or the next white-ball commitment. Travelling supporters may welcome the overlap – it is feasible to catch ODIs in Harare, then hop to Cape Town for the opening Test against the Proteas a fortnight later.
The fixtures will not satisfy everyone, and purists will lament another missed chance for a Test in Zimbabwe. Yet given Australia’s congested itinerary and the looming World Cup, an ODI pit-stop was probably the only realistic compromise. Imperfect, yes, but for Zimbabwe a meaningful step; for Australia, logical prep; and for cricket followers, at least something fresh on a path that has been too quiet for far too long.
