The league stage of IPL 2026 will now run through to 24 May, with the BCCI on Thursday filling in the gaps that were left when only the first 20 fixtures had been revealed last month. Fifty further matches are scheduled between 13 April and 24 May, spread across a dozen venues. Details of the play-offs remain on hold, although indications are that the final will be played on 31 May.
The tournament opens on 28 March when reigning champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru meet Sunrisers Hyderabad. From there, the action moves briskly: “Full details of the play-off venues and dates will be shared in due course,” the board said in a short statement.
Raipur’s Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh Stadium joins the roster after Royal Challengers chose the ground as a secondary home base. They will host Mumbai Indians on 10 May and Kolkata Knight Riders three days later.
Dharamsala also returns. A planned Delhi Capitals v Punjab Kings meeting was dropped last year amid cross-border tensions; the same fixture now has the honour of reopening the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association ground on 11 May. A senior HPCA official noted quietly that “it has been far too long since the ground last saw an IPL crowd”, a sentiment that will resonate with local supporters who have waited since 2021.
Adjustments to the calendar mean the tournament will feature 11 double-headers rather than the three originally pencilled in. That tweak, the BCCI explained, helps accommodate additional travel demands while keeping the league phase inside its traditional eight-week window.
What is missing, for the moment, is clarity on the knock-out leg. Franchises have been told to expect confirmation once the national election schedule is locked in—a routine bit of manoeuvring in an Indian summer. Until then, coaches will plan with what they have: 70 league fixtures, two new stops, and no shortage of points to chase.
