IPL 2026 Schedule Announcement HIGHLIGHTS: BCCI Secretary Devajit Saikia Gives MASSIVE UPDATE on IPL 2026 Schedule Release Date

IPL 2026 Schedule Announcement HIGHLIGHTS: The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) will release the schedule for the first 20 days of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 by March 12, said secretary Devajit Saikia. Catch all the LIVE UPDATES at NewsX.com.

IPL 2026 Schedule Announcement HIGHLIGHTS: The Indian Premier League (IPL) is all set to begin on March 28. IPL’s official broadcaster Star Sports confirmed the tournament’s starting date in a social media post on Sunday. The upcoming 19th Edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) will feature 84 matches in 2026, making it the largest in IPL history to date, compared with 74 in the previous season. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) will release the schedule for the first 20 days of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 by March 12, said secretary Devajit Saikia.

The Royal Challengers Bengaluru will come into the tournament as the defending champions after they created history in the previous edition where they defeated Punjab Kings in the finale. The schedule is expected to be released in two phases by the BCCI. Initially, the schedule for the first 15 days of the tournament will likely be announced. The remaining fixtures will be revealed later once the election dates and security arrangements are finalised.

The IPL 2026 will be played in the double round-robin format. The 10 teams will compete against each other. Every franchise will face opponents both at home and away. Traditionally, the opening match of the cash-rich league features the two finalists of the last season. 

Defending champions RCB will be led by Rajat Patidar while the last year’s runners-up Punjab Kings will have Shreyas Iyer at the helm. Chennai Super Kings who have recruited Sanju Samson for this year’s edition will be captained by Ruturaj Gaikwad while MS Dhoni is all set to feature in the tournament. As per reports, Dhoni might not play all the matches. 

Rajasthan Royals named Riyan Parag as the new skipper ahead of the likes of Ravindra Jadeja and Sam Curran after Samson’s departure. 

Mumbai Indians will have four World Cup-winning players in the unit with Hardik Pandya leading the side. Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav and Jasprit Bumrah will also don the MI jersey. It will also be interesting to see how Shubman Gill leads Gujarat Titans especially after he was not included in the T20 World Cup squad.