Final of the 2026 WPL to be held on a weekday for the first time, with the tournament also to have two double-headers.
WPL 2026: two double-headers, final on a weekday.
The 2026 Women’s Premier League (WPL) will begin on January 9 and feature two doubleheaders on Saturdays. For the first time, the final will take place on a weekday (Thursday, February 5) rather than over the weekend.
The 28-day competition will take place in two locations: Vadodara and Navi Mumbai, where India defeated South Africa in the final of the ODI World Cup in early November. The DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai will host the first 11 games, including the two doubleheaders, while Kotambi Stadium in Vadodara will host the final and eliminator on February 3.
On Thursday, the day of the WPL auction, Jayesh George, the chairman of the WPL, revealed the dates and locations. On the days of the doubleheader, every game—aside from the earlier match—will take place in the evening.
The men’s Under-19 World Cup concludes on February 6, the day after the WPL final, and the men’s T20 World Cup begins on February 7, making the last week hectic for multi-team contests.
This is the first time the WPL will be played during the January–February window, aside from a weekday final. The first three seasons took place in February and March, right before the IPL began. Additionally, this will be the first time that significant international events won’t conflict with the WPL.
The WPL’s defending champions, the Mumbai Indians (MI), have already won two titles in three seasons, with Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) being the other previous victor. Delhi Capitals (DC) have been runners-up in all three seasons. The other two clubs, Gujarat Giants and UP Warriorz, have never made the title round.
Ten days after the WPL ends, India will start an all-format tour of Australia, playing three T20Is, three ODIs and a Test from February 15 to March 9.