New Chandigarh stadium makes international debut today as India take on Australia
On Sunday, the stadium will host its first-ever international match as India take on Australia in the opening ODI of the three-match women’s series
After successfully hosting two Indian Premier League seasons in 2024 and 2025, the Punjab Cricket Association (PCA) Stadium in New Chandigarh is ready to make its international debut.
On Sunday, the stadium will host its first-ever international match as India take on Australia in the opening ODI of the three-match women’s series.
The second match on September 17 will also be played at the PCA Stadium, before the series concludes with the final ODI at Arun Jaitley stadium in New Delhi on September 20. Both the New Chandigarh matches will begin at 1.30 pm.
While Harmanpreet Kaur leads the Indian squad, Alyssa Healy will captain the Australian side.
With huge stars like Smriti Mandhana, Jemimah Rodrigues and Richa Ghosh for India, and Elysse Perry, Megan Schutt and Tahlia McGrath for Australia, the clash promises high-voltage action.
The series is crucial as India eyes its first Women’s ODI World Cup title, starting September 30, while seven-time champions Australia come in full force. In their last encounter in December, India had lost 3-0 to Australia.
Also, it is learnt that PCA will be honouring Indian captain Harmanpreet as she plays her 150th ODI on Sunday.
“I am excited to play at the new PCA Stadium. Hopefully, it will be a good game of cricket in front of the home crowd,” said captain Harmanpreet, who lives in Panchkula and hails from Moga. Middle-order batter Harleen Deol from Mohali is also part of the Indian team for the series.
Speaking to the media on the eve of the ODI series, Healy said, “It is always nice to be back playing cricket in India. It is a great place to come as a cricketer. For our group, it’s a chance to familiarise ourselves with the conditions heading into the World Cup and to test ourselves against a really strong side. It should be a hard-fought week of cricket.”
Notably, international women’s cricket is returning to the region after a gap of nine years as the PCA stadium in Mohali’s Phase 9 had last hosted some T20 Women’s World Cup matches in 2016.
Completed in February 2024, the New Chandigarh stadium in May this year had successfully organised Qualifier 1 and Eliminator during the 2025 IPL season, after four Punjab Kings (PBKS) home league matches in April.
But the BCCI dropped the stadium as one of the venues for the upcoming ICC Women’s ODI World Cup.
However, more international cricket action is promised, as later this year, the stadium will organise a T20I game between India and South Africa on December 11.
