Why Ahmedabad reached the final of IPL 2026 over Bengaluru
One of the main reasons why Ahmedabad will host the IPL 2026 final on May 31, and not Bengaluru or any other city, is that the city is scheduled to host a major International Cricket Council meeting in the city around that time, BCCI Secretary Devajit Saikia revealed to TOI.“An important meeting of the International Cricket Council is scheduled to be held in Ahmedabad around the time of the final. This meeting was originally supposed to be held in Doha, Qatar from March 25 to 27, but was postponed in the wake of the ongoing conflict between the US, Israel and Iran. All foreign delegations will be present in Ahmedabad during that period. The meeting will be held in conjunction with the Indian Premier League final,” Saikia told TOI on Friday.
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Saikia also explained that “logistical and weather issues”, apart from maximizing BCCI’s revenue through ticket sales, were important factors that led to the decision to hold the Indian Premier League final at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. “In terms of logistics and facilities, the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad is perhaps the best in India. The stadium can accommodate 1,32,00 spectators, which helps the BCCI in maximizing revenue from ticket sales for the final.
In comparison, the Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru has a capacity of only about 32,000 fans. Please remember that unlike the league matches in the Indian Premier League, which is organized by the state associations in partnership with the BCCI, the conduct of the qualifiers and the final is the responsibility of the BCCI only. “We were thinking whether other stadiums in India could also host a playoff, but then the possibility of pre-monsoon rains was looming at that time (end of May), and that factor discouraged us.
So, the weather pattern also plays a big role in scheduling this important match. The BCCI Secretary stressed that Ahmedabad is the most convenient and comfortable place to hold the IPL final at that time of the year. There were allegations that the BCCI took the IPL final away from Bengaluru because it is a Congress-ruled state.
However, another BCCI source pointed out that Punjab (New Chandigarh) and Himachal Pradesh (Dharamshala), which are ruled by opposition parties, have been allotted three playoff matches, one more than the stipulated number. Dharamshala will host Qualifier 1 on May 26, while New Chandigarh will host Qualifiers (on May 27) and Qualifiers 2 (on May 29). “In fact, these two states were given an extra game.
According to the agreement, the final venue must also host a playoff match.