The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) officially announced the complete plan for the Women’s Premier League (WPL) 2026 on November 29. The series will take place from January 9 to February 5, thus turning it into a 28-day cricket event full of action.
This will be the first time in the WPL that the final will be held on a Thursday, February 5, instead of the weekend slot that has been the norm. Besides, there will be two days with double-headers during this season, both on Saturdays. The matches in the early part of the day on these Saturdays will be followed by the evening matches and almost all other matches will occur in the evening as well.
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As was stated before, the event will take place in two locations: DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai and Kotambi Stadium in Vadodara.
What’s more, the first eleven matches, comprising of the double-headers, will be played in Navi Mumbai while the rest of the eleven matches including the eliminator on February 3 and the final on February 5 will be held in Vadodara.
WPL 2026 schedule
| Date | Location | Match |
|---|---|---|
| Jan 9 | Navi Mumbai | Mumbai Indians vs Royal Challengers Bengaluru |
| Jan 10 | Navi Mumbai | UP Warriorz vs Gujarat Giants |
| Jan 10 | Navi Mumbai | Mumbai Indians vs Delhi Capitals |
| Jan 11 | Navi Mumbai | Delhi Capitals vs Gujarat Giants |
| Jan 12 | Navi Mumbai | Royal Challengers Bengaluru vs UP Warriorz |
| Jan 13 | Navi Mumbai | Mumbai Indians vs Gujarat Giants |
| Jan 14 | Navi Mumbai | UP Warriorz vs Delhi Capitals |
| Jan 15 | Navi Mumbai | Mumbai Indians vs UP Warriorz |
| Jan 16 | Navi Mumbai | Royal Challengers Bengaluru vs Gujarat Giants |
| Jan 17 | Navi Mumbai | UP Warriorz vs Mumbai Indians |
| Jan 17 | Navi Mumbai | Delhi Capitals vs Royal Challengers Bengaluru |
| Jan 19 | Vadodara | Gujarat Giants vs Royal Challengers Bengaluru |
| Jan 20 | Vadodara | Delhi Capitals vs Mumbai Indians |
| Jan 22 | Vadodara | Gujarat Giants vs UP Warriorz |
| Jan 24 | Vadodara | Royal Challengers Bengaluru vs Delhi Capitals |
| Jan 26 | Vadodara | Royal Challengers Bengaluru vs Mumbai Indians |
| Jan 27 | Vadodara | Gujarat Giants vs Delhi Capitals |
| Jan 29 | Vadodara | UP Warriorz vs Royal Challengers Bengaluru |
| Jan 30 | Vadodara | Gujarat Giants vs Mumbai Indians |
| Feb 1 | Vadodara | Delhi Capitals vs UP Warriorz |
| Feb 3 | To Be Decided | Eliminator |
| Feb 5 | To Be Decided | Final |
During the WPL auction that took place on Thursday, WPL chairman Jayesh George announced the dates and venues.
The timing is significant indeed with this season. In contrast to prior years, when the WPL happened in February-March right before the IPL, the 2026 edition will be conducted in January-February. The new timing prevents the tournament from being played at the same time as major international tours and, hence, allows the best stars to take part without scheduling problems.
It is anticipated that the last week of the tournament will be very hectic. The finals of the men’s Under-19 World Cup and WPL are on February 6 and 5, respectively, while the men’s T20 World Cup will commence on the next day, February 7.
MI to play RCB in the first WPL game
The Mumbai Indians (MI) will enter the tournament as the reigning champions with two out of three WPL seasons won so far. Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) is the only other team besides MI that has been able to win the trophy. Delhi Capitals (DC) have managed to make it to the final every year but are still waiting for their first win. Gujarat Giants and UP Warriorz have not yet made it to the finals.
The Indian women’s team will set off for a complete tour to Australia, which consists of three T20Is, three ODIs, and a Test match from February 15 to March 9, ten days after the tournament concludes.
