As the Indian Premier League approaches its historic 20th season in 2027, BCCI is actively discussing major adjustments to the tournament window to combat extreme summer weather and pre-monsoon rains.
Proposed Start Date & Tournament Window
While the initial ICC Future Tours Programme (FTP) outlined a window from March 14 to May 30, 2027, top BCCI officials - including Secretary Devajit Saikia - have revealed plans to advance the season by roughly two weeks.
Target Start Date: March 10, 2027
Target Final Date: May 15, 2027
Reason for Shift: Moving the final out of late May avoids the extreme heatwaves in Northern/Western India and circumvents early monsoon showers that often disrupt playoff fixtures in mid-to-late May.
Total Matches 74 Matches (70 League Stage + 4 Playoff Matches)
Total Teams: 10 Franchises
Will Number of Matches Increase to 84 or 94?
Although initial media rights agreements for the 2023-2027 cycle left room to expand the league stage to 84 or 94 matches, BCCI has confirmed the 2027 season will stick to 74 matches.
Tight international bilateral windows and the need to protect player workload - especially with national boards aligning international schedules - make expanding beyond a 60-day window impractical at this stage.
RCB wins back to back titles in IPL 2026
Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) cemented their modern T20 dominance by clinching the IPL 2026 championship, defeating Gujarat Titans by five wickets in the grand final at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.
With this victory, RCB became only the third team in Indian Premier League history - alongside Chennai Super Kings and Mumbai Indians - to defend their title back-to-back.
Under Rajat Patidar's leadership, RCB followed up their long-awaited 2025 trophy with total supremacy in 2026.
Batting first in the grand final, Gujarat Titans struggled to build momentum against a disciplined Royal Challengers Bengaluru bowling attack, finishing at 155/8 in their allotted 20 overs. Rasikh Salam spearheaded the effort with impressive figures of 3/27, while veteran pacers Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Josh Hazlewood applied relentless pressure throughout the innings. Washington Sundar provided the sole major resistance for Gujarat, anchoring their total with a hard-fought, unbeaten half-century (50*).
In reply, RCB made quick work of the 156-run target, reaching 161/5 in just 18 overs to comfortably defend their championship title. Superstar batter Virat Kohli delivered a masterpiece on the big stage, anchoring the chase with a blistering, unbeaten 75 off just 42 deliveries. Kohli capped off the dominant performance in iconic style, launching a six to seal back-to-back IPL titles for Bengaluru.