The Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2026, featuring several Rajasthan Royals players across different domestic teams, is scheduled from November 14 to December 6.
The 19th edition of India's premier men's domestic T20 cricket tournament will feature 38 teams, including defending champions Jharkhand, who won their maiden title last season.
Live streaming and telecast of SMAT 2026 will be available in India.
Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, who became the youngest player ever to win the Orange Cap in IPL 2026, will captain Bihar in their opening two matches, including the fixtures against Saurashtra and Railways on November 14 and 16, respectively.
Royals pacer Sushant Mishra played a crucial role in Jharkhand's title triumph, finishing as the joint-highest wicket-taker with 22 wickets in 11 matches.
Jharkhand have been placed in Elite Group A alongside Chandigarh, who have named experienced Royals pacer Sandeep Sharma in their squad.
Group B, meanwhile, could witness several interesting match-ups involving Royals teammates.
The Royals’ wicketkeeper-batter Ravi Singh will represent the Railways having scored 218 runs in seven matches at a strike rate of 173.01 in SMAT 2025. He could face Sooryavanshi when Railways take on Bihar on November 16.
Yudhvir Singh and Brijesh Sharma will represent Jammu and Kashmir, while Emanjot Singh Chahal has been selected for Punjab. Both teams share Group B with Bihar and Railways.
Elite Group D will also feature several Royals, with Tushar Deshpande representing two-time champions Mumbai, Shubham Dubey playing for Vidarbha and Aman Rao turning out for Hyderabad.
Meanwhile, left-arm wrist-spinner Vignesh Puthur will represent Kerala in Group C under Sanju Samson's captaincy.
The 32 Elite teams are divided into four groups of eight. The top two teams from each group will qualify for the Super League, where they will be split into two groups of four.
The two Super League group winners will contest the final on December 6, while the six-team Plate competition concludes on November 24.
Where to watch Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2026 live
Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2026 live streaming will be available on JioHotstar. Live telecast of selected Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy cricket matches will be available on the Star Sports Khel TV channel in India.
