BCCI has released the schedule of the first 20 matches of the Indian Premier League 2026. The first match will be played between Royal Challengers Bangalore and Sunrisers Hyderabad. The first match of IPL 2026 will be played at M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru. The schedule of the remaining matches will be released later. Keeping in view the dates of assembly elections to be held in Tamil Nadu, West Bengal and Assam, BCCI will take a decision on the further schedule.

From Chennai Super Kings to Lucknow Super Giants, many other teams have already started preparations for IPL 2026 and the players are sweating profusely in the training camps. Royal Challengers Bangalore will play as the defending champions, whose first match will be against Sunrisers Hyderabad on March 28.

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Presenting the schedule for the first 20 matches of #TATAIPL 2026, to be played from March 28 to April 12, 2026

Full schedule will be announced once poll dates are announced for three states set to undergo State Assembly elections.

More details … pic.twitter.com/8Iq492v8TE

— IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) March 11, 2026

Matches will be played in these 10 grounds

In this schedule of the first phase, a total of 20 matches will be played on 10 grounds. These matches will be played in Bengaluru, Mumbai, Guwahati, New Chandigarh, Lucknow, Kolkata, Chennai, Delhi, Ahmedabad and Hyderabad.

Apart from this, Royal Challengers Bangalore team will play its 5 home matches at Chinnaswamy Stadium, while 2 home matches will be played in Raipur. The crisis over the matches being held at Bengaluru’s M Chinnaswamy Stadium is still not over. Last year, after the victory of RCB, there was a stampede outside this ground, in which 11 people lost their lives. Matches will be possible in Bengaluru only when approval is obtained from the expert committee constituted by the Karnataka government.

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Since the end of the T20 World Cup, the discussion regarding the schedule of IPL 2026 has intensified. Now the fans want to see the schedule of the upcoming season of the tournament as soon as possible. Recently, Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) Secretary Devjit Saikia had said that the schedule can be released by March 12. Now a big revelation has been made in a report regarding the schedule. So let us know when, where and how you will be able to watch the IPL schedule announcement live.

According to Cricbuzz, the schedule of 2026 IPL will be released today i.e. on Wednesday, March 11. Right now only the schedule of the first phase will be revealed. Devjit Saikia had also mentioned that first only the schedule of 20 days of the tournament will be announced.

What time and where to watch live?

The time of announcement of IPL schedule is said to be 7 pm. The announcement of this schedule will be broadcast live on TV through Star Sports Network. Live streaming will be through JioHotstar.

Expected to start from March 28

In the reports that came out some time ago, it was said that IPL will start from March 28. Earlier this date was kept as 26th March, but then it was increased by two days. The title match of the tournament can be played on May 31.

Earlier the announcement was to be made on March 8

It was claimed in many media reports that the IPL schedule would be released before the closing ceremony on March 08, the final day of the T20 World Cup, but this could not happen.

The first match between which teams?

The first match can be seen between defending champion Royal Challengers Bangalore and last season’s runner-up Punjab Kings. According to the rules, it is decided in advance that the first match of the season is played on the home ground of the defending champion. In this way, there is full hope that the first match will be held on RCB’s home ground.

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The schedule of IPL 2026 is in discussion, which was earlier to be announced on March 8. According to media reports, the schedule was to be revealed on the day of the final match of T20 World Cup 2026, but later the date of announcement was extended. The schedule can be announced today i.e. on March 9.

It is also reported that the schedule of the 2026 season of the Indian Premier League may be revealed in two phases. A schedule of 15-20 days can be released in the first phase and the remaining schedule can be released in the second phase. Meanwhile, know about those 5 occasions when the IPL schedule was changed due to various reasons.

1. IPL reaches South Africa

IPL is India’s league, so normally matches are organized here also. But the 2009 IPL season was held in South Africa from 18 April to 24 May. The main reason for this was the 2009 Lok Sabha elections. Due to elections across the country, the police could not provide security arrangements.

2. Half the matches played in UAE

The seventh season of the Indian Premier League came in the year 2014. This time too, Lok Sabha elections were going to be held across the country, hence the matches were organized in UAE from 16-30 April. After that the tournament started again from May 2, after which all the matches were played in India.

3. Schedule changed due to coronavirus

In the year 2020, the Coronavirus epidemic was at its peak, due to which BCCI did not give permission to organize IPL in India. Due to this, the 13th season was played in Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Sharjah.

4. Coronavirus has come again

The outbreak of coronavirus had reduced slightly in the year 2021. Meanwhile, the IPL 2021 season had started from April 9, but suddenly COVID cases started increasing in India. Due to this, IPL matches were stopped. The tournament went ahead from September 2 that year, but the matches were held in UAE. The final was played in Dubai on 15 October.

5. India-Pakistan war became the reason

IPL 2025 had started from March 22, meanwhile on April 22, a terrorist attack took place in Pahalgam, in which 26 people lost their lives. The situation was in bad shape due to ‘Operation Sindoor’ conducted by the Indian Army, so the schedule was changed midway and no IPL match was played from 9 May to 16 May.

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When will the next season of the Indian Premier League start? According to media reports, the schedule of IPL 2026 can be announced on 6 or 7 March. Earlier it was told that the schedule of IPL 2026 will be announced after the T20 World Cup, but according to the latest report, BCCI has already approved the date of announcement of the schedule. The schedule can be announced very soon.

Let us tell you that this time the IPL schedule will be revealed in two phases. Now according to Cricbuzz, the Governing Council of the Indian Premier League has approved the schedule of the first phase of IPL 2026. The schedule of the first phase may be revealed on March 6 or 7. Since the first match is played at the home ground of the defending champion, the first match of the season will be played at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru.

When will IPL 2026 start and where will the final be held?
In the statement issued by the RCB franchise, it was told that the Royal Challengers Bangalore team will play its 5 home matches at Chinnaswamy Stadium. There is news that a playoff match of IPL 2026 and even the final will be played at Chinnaswamy Stadium. IPL 2026 can start from 28th or 29th March and the final match can be played on 31st May.

Currently, T20 World Cup 2026 is being played hosted by India and Sri Lanka. After the conclusion of this World Cup tournament, the NOC of foreign players will be shared with the teams. Next week, information about the practice sessions will be given to all the franchises.

Assembly elections are going to be held in India soon in Tamil Nadu, West Bengal and Assam. For this reason, the schedule of IPL 2026 is reported to be revealed in two phases. Holding IPL matches in these three states on the day of elections would not be good from security point of view. Therefore, BCCI can announce the schedule of the second phase only after the date of elections is revealed.