The upcoming edition of the <a href="https://www.mid-day.com/sports/cricket/article/ipl-2026-irfan-pathan-explains-how-sanju-samson-presence-for-csk-against-rr-will-be-an-advantage-23620520" rel="nofollow">Indian Premier League</a> (IPL) 2026 is all set to kick off from March 28. So far, only the schedule of the first 20 matches has been announced due to state elections.
Ahead of the cash-rich league, the former Team India cricketer Harbhajan Singh wants a new team to emerge victorious. He is also hopeful of witnessing "great matches", considering the strength of the older teams.
"It's always exciting to see the IPL begin. I hope that this year, too, we'll get to witness the same enthusiasm, passion, and fun that the IPL brings. May a new team win. We wish for this every time, but since some of the older teams are very strong, we'll get to see some great matches," he said.
Harbhajan, during his playing stint, represented three franchises: <a href="https://www.mid-day.com/sports/cricket/article/chennai-super-kings-ipl-2026-full-fixtures-list-date-timings-and-venues-23620478" rel="nofollow">Chennai Super Kings</a> (CSK), Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), and Mumbai Indians (MI). Having played a total of 163 IPL matches, he drew curtains on his career with 150 scalps.
<h2>IPL 2026: Opening match's teams and venue</h2>
The first match of the IPL 2026 is scheduled to be played between defending champions, Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) and Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru.
Earlier this month, the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) Secretary, Santosh Menon, confirmed that the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium will host five of the RCB's <a href="https://www.mid-day.com/sports/cricket/article/ipl-2026-here-are-all-mumbai-indians-matches-announced-in-the-first-phase-schedule-of-the-marquee-event-23620388" rel="nofollow">IPL 2026</a> home games. The venue will also host one of the play-off matches and the title clash of the tournament.
Bengaluru's remaining two home matches will be played at the Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh International Cricket Stadium in Raipur, Chhattisgarh.
Cricket at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium has been suspended since June last year. Following RCB's triumph, fans gathered in huge numbers outside the stadium. During the celebrations, 11 people lost their lives, and several were left injured in a stampede.
The stadium did not host any of the ICC Women's World Cup matches or the recently concluded Men's <a href="https://www.mid-day.com/sports/cricket/article/t20-world-cup-2026-sir-vivian-richards-heaps-praise-on-team-india-after-historic-triumph-23620392" rel="nofollow">T20 World Cup 2026</a> games. Even the domestic and state franchise-based tournaments had been affected by this suspension placed on the iconic venue in Bengaluru.
It will be interesting to see if the defending champions, RCB, manage to defend their title under the captaincy of Rajat Patidar.
(With ANI Inputs)

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Ahead of the cash-rich league, the former Team India cricketer Harbhajan Singh wants a new team to emerge victorious

IPL 2026: Harbhajan hopeful of witnessing "great matches" in upcoming edition

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