IPL 2026: Schedule of first 20 days of the Indian Premier League 2026 season announced, tournament opener match between RCB vs SRH on March 28 in Chinnaswamy

Defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Sunrisers Hyderabad will play the opening match of IPL 2026 on 28 March,2026 at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru after schedule for the first 20 days of the Indian Premier League 2026 announced by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).

BCCI told in a release “As three states are scheduled to undergo state Assembly elections during this period the full schedule of the tournament will be announced once the poll dates are announced,”

A total of 20 matches will be played across 10 venues: Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad, Mumbai, New Chandigarh, Guwahati, Lucknow, Kolkata, Delhi and Ahmedabad.

BCCI told ” The matches scheduled in Bengaluru are subject to clearance from the Expert Committee constitute by Government of Karnataka. The committee will conduct a meeting and inspection of the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium on March 13, 2026, during which a full-scale mock demonstration of match-day arrangement will be carried out to assess the stadium’s preparedness for hosting IPL matches,”

Also Read : https://sportslila.com/ipl-2026-by-march-13-bcci-to-announce-first-20-days-schedule-of-ipl-2026/

During the period of 20 matches, the tournament will feature four double-headers, with the afternoon matches starting at 03:30 PM IST and the evening matches beginning at 7:30 PM IST.

Full schedule :