IPL 2026 opening venues guide Bengaluru Mumbai Chennai Kolkata
IPL 2026 opens across four headline cities in a clear sequence: Bengaluru on Sat Mar 28, 2026, Mumbai on Sun Mar 29, Kolkata on Thu Apr 2 and Chennai on Fri Apr 3. This is a selective venue guide to those four opening host cities, built around the confirmed fixtures rather than a full schedule recap.
The BCCI has cleared the first phase of the IPL 2026 schedule, with the final date still to be announced in broader reporting. The league-stage release is also being reported as part of a wider package with 70 matches across 12 venues, while IPL 2026 is scheduled across 10 venues: Bengaluru, Mumbai, Guwahati, New Chandigarh, Lucknow, Kolkata, Chennai, Delhi, Ahmedabad and Hyderabad.
The opening run has a neat rhythm: two western-city nights first, then the action shifts east to Kolkata before moving south to Chennai. That is the four-city route this guide tracks.
Opening schedule table
Matches 1, 2, 6 and 7 are the confirmed openers that map directly to the four headline cities in this guide. Keeping the focus on those fixtures makes the venue sequence easier to follow.
| Match | Date | Time (IST) | Teams | Venue | City |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Match 1 | Sat Mar 28, 2026 | 7:30 PM IST | Royal Challengers Bengaluru vs Sunrisers Hyderabad | M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru | Bengaluru |
| Match 2 | Sun Mar 29, 2026 | 7:30 PM IST | Mumbai Indians vs Kolkata Knight Riders | Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai | Mumbai |
| Match 6 | Thu Apr 2, 2026 | 7:30 PM IST | Kolkata Knight Riders vs Sunrisers Hyderabad | Eden Gardens, Kolkata | Kolkata |
| Match 7 | Fri Apr 3, 2026 | 7:30 PM IST | Chennai Super Kings vs Punjab Kings | M. A. Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai | Chennai |
Venue-by-city opening fixture snapshot
| City | Stadium | Opening Match | Date | Time (IST) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bengaluru | M. Chinnaswamy Stadium | Royal Challengers Bengaluru vs Sunrisers Hyderabad | Sat Mar 28, 2026 | 7:30 PM IST |
| Mumbai | Wankhede Stadium | Mumbai Indians vs Kolkata Knight Riders | Sun Mar 29, 2026 | 7:30 PM IST |
| Kolkata | Eden Gardens | Kolkata Knight Riders vs Sunrisers Hyderabad | Thu Apr 2, 2026 | 7:30 PM IST |
| Chennai | M. A. Chidambaram Stadium | Chennai Super Kings vs Punjab Kings | Fri Apr 3, 2026 | 7:30 PM IST |
Bengaluru gets the season started, Mumbai follows on Sunday night, Kolkata takes an early-April slot and Chennai closes this opening-city run. It is a clean venue chain for readers tracking where the first confirmed IPL 2026 nights land.
If you are looking beyond the opening four cities, the broader schedule reporting says the playoffs are set for May 26 to 31 across three different cities.