IPL 2026 is all set to go on the floor from Saturday with the encounter between the Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Sunrisers Hyderabad at Chinnaswami Stadium. BCCI has planned to pay a tribute to the 11 deaths in the stampede that happened at RCB’s trophy ceremony last year; also, the RCB management has decided to leave 11 seats free to pay a remembrance for the lost ones. As the wait is set to end and the cricket fever is ready to take over the world, all teams have set their eyes on the trophy. Injury concerns can raise eyebrows for a few teams, and as the winner takes it all, those who will overcome all the hurdles will be the champion. Before the trailblazing event starts, let's look at how the teams have shaped during this cool-down period after the auction.
Chennai Super Kings-
With Nathan Ellis set to miss the tournament, their possible playing XI can look like this-
Sanju Samson, Ruturaj Gaikwad(C), Ayush Mhatre/ Urvil Patel, Dewald Bravis, Shivam Dube, Kartik Sharma, MS Dhoni (WK), Prashant Veer, Khaleel Ahmed, Noor Ahmed, Matt Henry. Impact Sub- Akeal Hossein/Spencer Johnson/ Anshul Kamboj.
Mumbai Indians-
The Blues had not had to deal with any injuries, and with more added powers they can shape their team like this-
Rohit Sharma, Quinton De Kock (WK), Surya Kumar Yadav, Will Jacks/Sherfane Rutherford, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya(C), Mitchel Santner, Deepak Chahar, Trent Boult, Mayank Markande, Jasprit Bumrah.
Impact Sub- Naman Dhir.
Royal Challengers Bengaluru-
The defending champions will miss the services of Josh Hazlewood in the initial phase. Also, the frontliner, Yash Dayal, for the whole season, and with Nuwan Tushara also in doubt, their bowling line-up will have to face heavy problems.
Virat Kohli, Jacob Betthel, Devdutt Paddikal, Rajat Patidar(C), Venkatesh Iyer, Tim David, Jitesh Sharma (WK), Krunal Pandya, Romario Shephard, Bhuveneshwar Kumar, Jacob Duffy.
Impact sub- Suyash Sharma/Mangesh Yadav
Gujarat Titans-
With a strong Indian lineup, the team is looking good. If everyone clicks well, the team can do well.
Shubman Gill(C), Sai Sudarshan, Jos Buttler(WK), Kumar Kushagra/Glenn Philips, Shahrukh Khan, Rahul Tewatia, Washington Sundar, Jason Holder/Sai Kishore, Rashid Khan, Kagiso Rabada, Mohammad Siraj.
Impact Sub- Prasidh Krishna/ Arshad Khan.
Rajasthan Royals
With a blend of explosive young talent and experienced international stars, Rajasthan Royals head into IPL 2026 with a well-balanced squad. While there are no major injury concerns reported, the team will be closely monitoring the workload of key overseas players.
Yashasvi Jaiswal, Vaibhav Suryabhanshi, Riyan Parag, Donovan Ferreira, Dhruv Jurel(WK), Shimron Hetmyer, Ravindra Jadeja, Dashun Shanaka/Nandre Burger, Ravi Bishnoi, Sandeep Sharma, Jofra Archer
Impact sub- Tushar Deshpande
Delhi Capitals-
Delhi Capitals will head into IPL 2026 with a strong and balanced squad, but they will miss a few key players at the start of the tournament. England batter Ben Duckett has officially withdrawn from the season, while Australian pacer Mitchell Starc is set to miss the opening matches due to workload management and delayed availability.
KL Rahul (WK), Pathum Nissanka/Abhishek Porel, Nitish Rana, Tristan Stubbs, Axar Patel(C), David Miller, Asutosh Sharma, Vipraj Nigam, Kuldeep Yadav, Auqib Nabi Dar 11. Dushmantha Chameera
Impact sub-T. Natarajan/Lungi Ngidi
Kolkata Knight Riders -
With a power-packed squad, Kolkata Knight Riders look balanced, though major fitness concerns around pacers could affect combinations in the tournament.
Ajinkya Rahane(C), Finn Allen (WK), Cameron Green, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Rinku Singh, Ramandeep Singh, Rovman Powell, Sunil Narine, Vaibhab Arora, Kartik Tyagi, Varun Chakravarthy.
Impact sub- Umran Malik/Navdeep Saini
Punjab Kings -
Punjab Kings will rely heavily on their core Indian players, with no major injury concerns, but consistency remains a key issue.
Prabhsimran Singh(WK), Priyansh Arya, Shreyas Iyer(C), Cooper Connoly, Marcus Stoinis, Sashank Singh, Nehal Wadhera, Marco Jansen, Harpreet Brar, Yuzi Chahal, Arshdeep Singh
Impact sub- Xavier Bartlett
Lucknow Super Giants-
With Wanindu Hasaranga unavailable, the team will have a problem in the spin department; otherwise, the batting power can dominate any team.
Aiden Markram, Mitchell Marsh, Nicholas Pooran, Rishabh Pant(C, WK), Josh Inglish, Ayush Badoni, Abdul Samad, Shahbaz Ahmed, Mohammad Shami, Mohsin Khan, Mayank Yadav.
Impact sub- Digvesh Rathi
Sunrisers Hyderabad –
Sunrisers Hyderabad will miss their captain Pat Cummins for fitness management, but their explosive batting lineup keeps them dangerous.
Travis Head, Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan (C, WK), Henrich Klassen, Liam Livingstone, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Aniket Varma, Kamindu Mendis, Harshal Patel, Zeeshan Ansari, Jaidev Unadkat
Impact sub- Smaran Ravichandran/Shivam Mavi
As IPL 2026 gets underway, the stage is set for another thrilling season of high-intensity cricket, where every team will battle not just their opponents but also challenges like injuries, form, and team combinations.
