The Ranji Trophy 2025-26 season will start on Wednesday with its first-round matches running simultaneously across various parts of India from October 15 to 18.
All the Ranji Trophy cricket matches are scheduled to start at 9:30 AM Indian Standard Time (IST). The Ranji Trophy 2025-26 matches will be available to watch on live streaming and telecast in India.
The 91st edition of the Ranji Trophy, India’s premier domestic first-class cricket tournament, will feature a total of 38 teams competing across two divisions. The Elite Division comprises 32 teams, divided into four groups of eight teams each, while the Plate League consists of six teams.
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After all teams from a group square off with each other once in the round-robin matches, the top two teams from each pool will advance to the quarter-finals, with the winning teams progressing further to the semi-finals and then the final.
The top two sides in the Plate League will meet in the Plate final, with the winning side earning promotion to the Elite Division in the next year.
The team with the fewest points among the bottom-placed teams in the Elite Division will get relegated to the Plate League.
All group stage matches will be played over four days, while the Elite League knockout games will happen over five days.
Several Rajasthan Royals players, including RR skipper Sanju Samson and teenage prodigy Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, will be in action in the first-round matches.
Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, who is the fourth-youngest Indian first-class debutant, has been named as the vice-captain of Bihar in Elite Group B.
Sanju Samson will represent Kerala in Elite Group A, which also features Riyan Parag as a part of the Assam squad and Tushar Deshpande, who will play for Mumbai.
Nitish Rana is a part of the Delhi squad in Elite Group D. Ashok Sharma, Kunal Singh Rathore, Kumar Kartikeya and Yudhvir Singh are the other Royals players who will be in action in the multi-day red-ball cricket tournament.
Ashok Sharma and Kunal Singh Rathore will represent Rajasthan, while Kumar Kartikeya and Yudhvir Singh will play for Madhya Pradesh and Jammu & Kashmir, respectively.
As many as 138 matches will be played over the course of the 2025-26 Ranji Trophy season.
Vidarbha are the defending champions and Mumbai are the most successful team in Ranji Trophy history, having won the title 42 times.
Where to watch Ranji Trophy 2025-26 live in India
Live streaming of the Ranji Trophy 2025-26 matches will be available on the JioHotstar app and website in India. Live telecast of the Ranji Trophy matches will be available on the Star Sports Khel TV channel in India.
