The celebrations from India’s incredible T20 World Cup 2026 win have barely settled in. But fans have turned one eye to the next big tournament, that is, the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026. The new season will begin from March 28 onwards, with this time the BCCI arranging perhaps the most matches in a season ever. But they haven’t released the IPL 2026 schedule yet.

The new season is less than 18 days away. Yet, fans don’t know when their favourite IPL team is playing, what the venues will be and where the knockouts will happen. This is because the BCCI is itself waiting for election dates. This year, there are general elections across various states in India.

Hence, the IPL stakeholders will need to keep in mind the dates, as they shouldn’t clash. However, what we know is that the BCCI will release the IPL 2026 schedule in two phases, with secretary Devajit Saikia confirming the announcement of the first phase by March 12.

Not finalists but RCB vs CSK to open IPL 2026?

Now, a new development has come in. As per Cricbuzz, the opening match of the 2026 season could well be played between defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) and arch-rivals Chennai Super Kings (CSK). Generally, the curtain-raiser is played between the two finalists of the previous edition. However, as far as the Punjab Kings (PBKS) are concerned, they are likely to open their campaign at home in Mullanpur with a clash against the Gujarat Titans (GT). Even in IPL 2025, PBKS played their first game against GT, only at Ahmedabad.

Meanwhile, in the same report, it is being said that the BCCI has told franchises that there will be a captain’s photoshoot in New Delhi on March 15. It is the same day when the BCCI is hosting the NAMAN awards to honour various ICC trophy-winning Indian teams. Meanwhile, the general annual meeting before the IPL that happens in presence of all captains and coaches will happen on March 25.