WPL 2026: Full Schedule, Match Dates, Squads and Live Streaming Details

The Women’s Premier League will be back for its fourth season in 2026, bringing together the best women cricketers from all over the world. The tournament starts on January 9 with a high-stakes match between the Mumbai Indians, who are the defending champions, and the Royal Challengers Bengaluru, who won the tournament in 2024. The match will take place at the DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai. The competition runs until February 5 and has five teams playing in 22 matches. This season should be the most competitive one yet.

This year’s WPL is even more important because it will happen in the ICC’s dedicated January window, which means it won’t conflict with any bilateral series. The tournament is also an important chance for players to secure their spots before the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026. 

With the Mumbai Indians going for their third title and three other teams still looking for their first, this month of cricket is going to be very interesting. So let us get to know more about the team and everything about WPL. 

Tournament Format and Structure

The WPL 2026 follows a double round-robin format where each of the five teams faces every other team twice, producing 20 league stage matches. The top three teams on the points table advance to the knockout stage. The league topper earns a direct entry to the final on February 5, while the second and third-placed teams battle it out in the Eliminator on February 3. The Eliminator winner progresses to face the table-toppers in the title decider.

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WPL 2026: The Full Schedule, Dates, Timings and Venue

The WPL 2026 schedule is split between two venues across nearly a month of action. The first 11 matches took place at the DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai from January 9 to 17. The tournament then shifts to the BCA Stadium in Vadodara for the remaining nine league matches and both playoff fixtures.

Two double-header days are scheduled during the competition. January 10 and January 17 will see two matches each, with the first game starting at 3:30 PM and the evening fixture at the usual 7:30 PM slot. 

The opening match on January 9 pits the last two champions against each other, a fitting start to what could be an unpredictable season. The venue switch happens after the January 17 doubleheader, with action resuming in Vadodara on January 19. The BCA Stadium hosts all knockout matches, including the Eliminator on February 3 and the summit clash two days later.

Participating Teams and Captains

Five franchises return for WPL 2026, with three teams operating under new leadership. Mumbai Indians continue with Harmanpreet Kaur at the helm after their successful 2025 campaign. Royal Challengers Bengaluru have retained Smriti Mandhana as captain following their 2024 triumph. 

The other three sides made captaincy changes ahead of the season. Delhi Capitals appointed Jemimah Rodrigues as their new leader, UP Warriorz turned to Australian legend Meg Lanning, and Gujarat Giants handed the captaincy to Ashleigh Gardner.

Mumbai Indians are still the team to beat after winning the WPL title twice, making them the first franchise to do so. Delhi Capitals have made it to all three finals since 2023, but they still haven’t won the trophy. Rodrigues’s change in leadership shows that they really want to get over the line this time. The Gujarat Giants and UP Warriorz are still looking for their first title.

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WPL 2026 Full Squads

The Women’s Premier League (WPL) 2026 features the most exciting and competitive lineups in women’s cricket, with each franchise announcing a blend of experienced international stars and emerging domestic talent. 

Mumbai Indians

• Captain: Harmanpreet Kaur
• Squad: Nat Sciver-Brunt, Amelia Kerr, Hayley Matthews, Amanjot Kaur, Sajeevan Sajana, Shabnim Ismail, G Kamalini, Nicola Carey, Sanskriti Gupta, Rahila Firdous, Poonam Khemnar, Triveni Vasistha, Nalla Reddy, Saika Ishaque, Milly Illingworth

Mumbai Indians retained their core group of players for 2026. The presence of Nat Sciver-Brunt gives them a world-class all-rounder who can change games with bat and ball. Hayley Matthews and Amelia Kerr provide proven international quality in the middle order and with the ball. Harmanpreet Kaur leads the Indian team, which has experience and knowledge of the area.

Royal Challengers Bengaluru

• Captain: Smriti Mandhana
• Squad: Richa Ghosh, Ellyse Perry, Lauren Bell, Pooja Vastrakar, Arundhati Reddy, Radha Yadav, Nadine de Klerk, Shreyanka Patil, Georgia Voll, Linsey Smith, Prema Rawat, Gautami Naik, Prathyoosha Kumar, Dayalan Hemalatha, Grace Harris

The 2024 champions have Ellyse Perry as their marquee overseas signing. The Australian superstar adds depth to the batting lineup and gives the team a third seamer option. Smriti Mandhana is still the most important player, and Richa Ghosh is a great middle-order batsman. There is a good mix of pace and spin options in the bowling attack.

Delhi Capitals

• Captain: Jemimah Rodrigues
• Squad: Shafali Verma, Annabel Sutherland, Marizanne Kapp, Shree Charani, Chinelle Henry, Laura Wolvaardt, Niki Prasad, Sneh Rana, Taniya Bhatia, Lizelle Lee, Deeya Yadav, Mamatha Madiwala, Nandani Sharma, Lucy Hamilton, Minnu Mani, and Alana King.

Delhi Capitals have one of the most dangerous opening pairs in women’s T20 cricket. With their aggressive batting, Shafali Verma and Laura Wolvaardt can set up big totals or chase down targets. Marizanne Kapp is a great all-around player, and Annabel Sutherland makes both batting and bowling better. The squad has the talent to finally win their first WPL title under new captain Jemimah Rodrigues.

Gujarat Giants

• Captain: Ashleigh Gardner
• Squad: Beth Mooney, Sophie Devine, Georgia Wareham, Bharti Fulmali, Kashvee Gautam, Renuka Singh, Yastika Bhatia, Anushka Sharma, Tanuja Kanwar, Kanika Ahuja, Titas Sadhu, Happy Kumari, Kim Garth, Shivani Singh, Danielle Wyatt-Hodge, Rajeshwari Gayakwad, Ayushi Soni

Gujarat Giants have assembled a squad with serious firepower at the top. Beth Mooney and Sophie Devine are a strong opening pair who can both win games in the power play. Ashleigh Gardner’s leadership and all-around skills make the middle order stronger. Georgia Wareham has leg-spin options in addition to Indian spinners.

UP Warriorz

• Captain: Meg Lanning
• Squad: Deepti Sharma, Shikha Pandey, Phoebe Litchfield, Asha Sobhana, Sophie Ecclestone, Deandra Dottin, Kiran Navgire, Kranti Gaud, Shweta Sehrawat, Harleen Deol, Chloe Tryon, Suman Meena, Simran Shaikh, G Trisha, Pratika Rawal, Charli Knott

UP Warriorz secured Deepti Sharma for a record bid in the recent auction, making her the most expensive player in WPL history. Her all-round skills complement a squad that includes destructive batter Deandra Dottin and England’s premier spinner Sophie Ecclestone. Meg Lanning’s captaincy brings a wealth of T20 tournament-winning experience to a team hungry for its first trophy.

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Tournament Venues

The DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai hosts the opening phase with a seating capacity of around 55,000. The BCA Stadium in Vadodara takes over for the second half, holding approximately 48,000 spectators. The choice to use only two venues is because of scheduling issues with domestic tournaments and getting ready for the T20 World Cup later this year.

WPL History and Past Champions

The Mumbai Indians won the first WPL title in 2023 by beating the Gujarat Giants in the final. In 2024, Royal Challengers Bengaluru finally won the trophy by beating Delhi Capitals. In 2025, the Mumbai Indians came back and won the championship again, beating the Delhi Capitals. They became the first team to win the championship twice. The Delhi Capitals have made it to all three finals but have never won.

Details about Live Streaming and Broadcasting

Fans in India can watch all 22 matches live on the Star Sports network, which includes Star Sports 1, Star Sports 2, and Star Sports Select. There will be commentary in several languages. If you have an active subscription, you can stream JioHotstar content digitally on both the mobile app and the website.

People in the UK can watch Sky Sports Cricket and the Sky Go app. People in Australia can watch Fox Cricket and Kayo Sports. People in the USA and Canada can watch on Willow TV and the Willow app. People in South Africa can watch SuperSport Cricket, and people in New Zealand can watch on Sky Sport NZ.

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