Team India will kick-off their new World Test Championship (WTC) cycle with a five-match Test series against England, slated to begin on June 20.

Ahead of the marquee series, Indian players are likely to get a chance to play a minimum of two practice matches.

According to a report published in The Indian Express on Tuesday, “A shadow tour of India A will begin in the first week of June, with frontline Indian players expected to take the trip."

It has been reported that “India A will take on England Lions in a four-day fixture tentatively on June 4, followed by an intra-squad match before the first Test. The second India A fixture against the Lions team will happen there after."

Since the Test series gets underway immediately after the culmination of IPL 2025, there is a high chance that all the Test regulars, especially the batters, will participate in the first India A match.

Before the BGT 2024-25 Down Under, India A played two warm-up matches, and the likes of KL Rahul, Devdutt Padikkal and Dhruv Jurel featured in the second match held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.

The first Test between India and England is scheduled to be played at Headingley from June 20 to 24, and Edgbaston will host the second Test from July 2 to 6. The action will then move to Lord’s, where the third Test will take place from July 10 to 14. Old Trafford (July 23-27) is the venue of the fourth Test while the series will conclude at the Oval (July 31-August 4).

In the last Test series played between the two sides, India secured a 4-1 win at home whereas the last red-ball series played on English soil finished with a scoreline of 2-2.