The next edition of the IPL will start on March 26 and will continue till May 31. According to a Cricbuzz report on Monday (December 15) night, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has informed the franchises about this schedule. According to the Cricbuzz report, the league’s CDO Hemang Amin informed the franchises about the IPL schedule in a briefing before Tuesday’s auction in Abu Dhabi.
Defending champion Royal Challengers Bangalore will take the field in the opening match of the 19th edition of the world’s most expensive and popular franchise cricket league. However, it is not certain whether they will be able to play at their home venue M. Chinnaswamy Stadium or not. The stadium has been in doubt over the stadium’s hosting of matches after a horrific stampede in Bengaluru during RCB’s maiden IPL title celebrations a few months ago.
The report also said that although the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) has received conditional permission from the state government, it will only be able to host IPL matches there if it meets the stipulated safety and security conditions.
Meanwhile, the BCCI on Monday night finalized the player pool by adding 19 more cricketers to the player list on the eve of the 2026 IPL auction. The new additions include Bengal opener Abhimanyu Easwaran, New Zealand’s Ben Sears and South Africa’s Ethan Bosh.
Cameron Green, Liam Livingstone and Ravi Bishnoi will be in the spotlight ahead of the IPL 2026 auction to be held at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday. This is the third consecutive time that the IPL auction is being held outside India. The previous auctions were held in Dubai (2024) and Jeddah (2025).
All ten teams are expected to spend big to build a squad strong enough to win the IPL 2026 trophy. A total of 77 slots are vacant, including 31 for foreign players. Three-time champions Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) have the highest number of vacancies—13, followed by 2016 champions Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) with 10.
Out of a long list of 1,355 players, 359 have been shortlisted, including 244 Indians and 115 foreigners. 40 players are in the list with the highest base price of Rs 2 crore, of which only two are Indians—Ravi Bishnoi and Venkatesh Iyer.
Australian pace-bowling all-rounder Cameron Green is seen as the biggest attraction in the auction. The bid for him is expected to touch over Rs 25 crore due to the mismatch between supply and demand in the mini IPL auction.
Apart from Bishnoi and Green, England’s Liam Livingstone and Jamie Smith, New Zealand pacer Matt Henry, wicketkeeper-batsman Tim Seifert and South African batsman David Miller are also in the spotlight. Similarly, special attention will be paid to Sri Lankan pacer Matisha Pathirana, who was released by Chennai Super Kings (CSK).
