Indian Premier League 2026 To Take Place From March 28 To May 31 - Report

The Indian Premier League 2026 is reportedly to take place from March 28 to May 31. The tentative start date of the tournament was March 26, as told to the franchises by the BCCI, but according to a recent development, the new start date is delayed by 2 days.

The IPL Governing Council is scheduled to meet next week to finalise the IPL 2026 schedule, according to a report by ESPN Cricinfo. The schedule is usually announced well in advance but this time there has been a delay as there are elections in Assam, West Bengal and Tamil Nadu, whose dates haven't been announced yet.

These states hold importance for the IPL, as Kolkata Knight Riders (West Bengal) and Chennai Super Kings (Tamil Nadu) have their home grounds in these states, while Assam's Baraspara Stadium is the second home venue for Rajasthan Royals.

IPL has been conducted during the elections in the past as well, apart from the one-off incident in 2009, when the entire tournament was shifted to South Africa due to the general elections. Since then, whether in general state elections, there has been good coordination between the BCCI and the government to ensure the smooth conduct of the marquee cricket league.

However, during the election year, the IPL schedule has been announced in two phases, and this time also, the Governing Council is planning to do the same; however, the final call on this will be taken in the meeting next week.

RCB's Home Venue Yet To Be Finalised

Another matter of importance that is to be discussed in the Governing Council's meeting is the venue for the opening of IPL 2026. After the tragic stampede last year during RCB's victory celebrations, the franchise is in talks with the Karnataka State Cricket Association on whether to conduct their seven home matches in the Chinnaswamy Stadium or not.

RCB have narrowed down on Navi Mumbai, Raipur, and Pune as alternative venues, in case Bengaluru is not finalised.