That's a wrap for our coverage of the IPL 2026 schedule announcement. The first 20 games have been revealed, and the excitement can now fully begin!

April 12 is the last date till which the IPL schedule has been announced. It will be interesting to see what fixtures take place after that, or if even a day or two is skipped due to the elections in various states.

Punjab Kings (PBKS), the runners-up of IPL 2025, will open their 2026 campaign against Gujarat Titans (GT) at Mullanpur on Tuesday, March 30. Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) will face off against Delhi Capitals (DC) at the Ekana Stadium in Lucknow on Wednesday, March 31.

Rajasthan Royals will play three matches at Guwahati in the opening 20 games of the season. CSK, MI and RCB will be their three opponents there. This means their home games at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur is likely to happen later.

As expected, the first 20 matches have been announced, with the full schedule set to be revealed in due course. Here's the schedule so far:

News
Presenting the schedule for the first 20 matches of #TATAIPL 2026, to be played from March 28 to April 12, 2026
Full schedule will be announced once poll dates are announced for three states set to undergo State Assembly elections.
More details ... pic.twitter.com/8Iq492v8TE

— IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) March 11, 2026

The M. Chinnaswamy Stadium will host RCB's games against SRH (March 28) and CSK (April 5) among the first batch of games. However, their home matches are subject to clearance by an expert committee. That will take place on March 13.

And this is official too! Chennai Super Kings (CSK) will take on Rajasthan Royals (RR) in their season opener at Guwahati on Monday, March 30. 

It's official: Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) will host Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in the IPL 2026 opener at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium on Saturday, March 28. MI and KKR will face off in the second game on March 29.

The host broadcaster of IPL 2026 is set to officially announce the schedule in the next few minutes. Stay tuned, folks!

CSK and RR were involved in the most high-profile trade in IPL history ahead of IPL 2026, with Sanju Samson joining the five-time champions and Ravindra Jadeja going the other way. These two sides facing off in the first game would be cause for a spicy start to the season!

According to a report by The Indian Express, Chennai Super Kings (CSK) are set to play Rajasthan Royals (RR) in their first match of IPL 2026. However, the match will not take place at the M.A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. Instead, it is set to take place at the Barsapara Stadium in Guwahati!

We are unlikely to get the entire schedule today, with the first batch of fixtures set to be announced today. A major reason for this are elections in West Bengal, Tamil Nadu and Assam during that period.

According to further details in the report, Mumbai Indians (MI) will open their campaign against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at the Wankhede Stadium on Super Sunday, March 29. That should be an absolute cracker!

According to a report by The Indian Express, defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) will play the first match of IPL 2026 against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH). Interestingly, it will take place at their home ground, the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium.

A very warm welcome to one and all. The mood is quite festive today, because the first batch of fixtures for the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 season is set to be announced shortly. Stay tuned to NDTV Sports for all the live updates!