The Pakistan Cricket Board has released the PSL 2026 schedule. The tournament will begin on March 26, while the final will be played on May 3. HBL PSL 2026 will feature two new teams taking the total number of franchises in the league to eight. The season will include 44 matches.
The PCB has also introduced an auction system for player selection instead of the traditional draft. Defending champions Lahore Qalandars will face Hyderabad Kingsmen in the opening match at Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore on March 26.
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Key Facts at a Glance
| Tournament | HBL Pakistan Super League 2026 (PSL 11) |
| Dates | 26 March – 3 May 2026 |
| Total matches | 44 (incl. 4 playoff games) |
| Teams | 8 (expanded from 6 — two new franchises: Hyderabad Kingsmen & Rawalpindi Pindiz) |
| Format | Group stage (two groups of 4) → Qualifier → Eliminator 1 → Eliminator 2 → Final |
| Venues | Lahore (Gaddafi Stadium), Rawalpindi, Multan, Karachi, Peshawar, Faisalabad |
| Final | 3 May 2026 — Lahore (Night) |
| Defending champ | Lahore Qalandars (won PSL 10) |
| Title sponsor | HBL (Habib Bank Limited) |
| Broadcast (PK) | ARY Sports / PTV Sports (confirm with editor) |
| Key change | First-ever player auction system replacing the draft. Sold 103 players on 11 Feb 2026. |
| New teams | Rawalpindi Pindiz (formerly Multan Sultans franchise) & Multan Sultans (new Sialkot franchise) |
| Notable players | Babar Azam, Shaheen Afridi, Steve Smith, Marnus Labuschagne, Devon Conway, Fakhar Zaman |
PSL 2026 Schedule — Full Fixture List
1st Phase— 26 March to 6 April
| Date | Match | Teams | Venue | D/N |
| Mar 26 | M1 | Lahore Qalandars vs Hyderabad Kingsmen | Lahore | Night |
| Mar 27 | M2 | Quetta Gladiators vs Karachi Kings | Lahore | Night |
| Mar 28 | M3 | Peshawar Zalmi vs Rawalpindi Pindiz | Peshawar | Day |
| Mar 28 | M4 | Multan Sultans vs Islamabad United | Lahore | Night |
| Mar 29 | M5 | Quetta Gladiators vs Hyderabad Kingsmen | Lahore | Day |
| Mar 29 | M6 | Lahore Qalandars vs Karachi Kings | Lahore | Night |
| Mar 31 | M7 | Islamabad United vs Peshawar Zalmi | Rawalpindi | Night |
| Apr 1 | M8 | Multan Sultans vs Hyderabad Kingsmen | Multan | Night |
| Apr 2 | M9 | Islamabad United vs Quetta Gladiators | Rawalpindi | Day |
| Apr 2 | M10 | Rawalpindi Pindiz vs Karachi Kings | Rawalpindi | Night |
| Apr 3 | M11 | Multan Sultans vs Lahore Qalandars | Multan | Night |
| Apr 4 | M12 | Rawalpindi Pindiz vs Islamabad United | Rawalpindi | Night |
| Apr 5 | M13 | Multan Sultans vs Quetta Gladiators | Multan | Night |
| Apr 6 | M14 | Multan Sultans vs Rawalpindi Pindiz | Multan | Night |
2nd Phase — 8 to 13 April
| Date | Match | Teams | Venue | D/N |
| Apr 8 | M15 | Hyderabad Kingsmen vs Peshawar Zalmi | Karachi | Night |
| Apr 9 | M16 | Lahore Qalandars vs Islamabad United | Faisalabad | Day |
| Apr 9 | M17 | Karachi Kings vs Peshawar Zalmi | Karachi | Night |
| Apr 10 | M18 | Quetta Gladiators vs Rawalpindi Pindiz | Karachi | Night |
| Apr 11 | M19 | Peshawar Zalmi vs Lahore Qalandars | Faisalabad | Day |
| Apr 11 | M20 | Karachi Kings vs Hyderabad Kingsmen | Karachi | Night |
| Apr 12 | M21 | Hyderabad Kingsmen vs Islamabad United | Karachi | Night |
| Apr 13 | M22 | Peshawar Zalmi vs Multan Sultans | Faisalabad | Night |
3rd Phase — 15 to 19 April
| Date | Match | Teams | Venue | D/N |
| Apr 15 | M23 | Peshawar Zalmi vs Quetta Gladiators | Faisalabad | Night |
| Apr 16 | M24 | Hyderabad Kingsmen vs Rawalpindi Pindiz | Faisalabad | Day |
| Apr 16 | M25 | Karachi Kings vs Islamabad United | Karachi | Night |
| Apr 17 | M26 | Lahore Qalandars vs Quetta Gladiators | Faisalabad | Night |
| Apr 18 | M27 | Lahore Qalandars vs Rawalpindi Pindiz | Faisalabad | Night |
| Apr 19 | M28 | Multan Sultans vs Karachi Kings | Lahore | Day |
| Apr 19 | M29 | Quetta Gladiators vs Hyderabad Kingsmen | Lahore | Night |
4th Phase — 21 to 26 April
| Date | Match | Teams | Venue | D/N |
| Apr 21 | M30 | Lahore Qalandars vs Quetta Gladiators | Lahore | Day |
| Apr 21 | M31 | Rawalpindi Pindiz vs Multan Sultans | Rawalpindi | Night |
| Apr 22 | M32 | Karachi Kings vs Hyderabad Kingsmen | Lahore | Day |
| Apr 22 | M33 | Peshawar Zalmi vs Multan Sultans | Rawalpindi | Night |
| Apr 23 | M34 | Rawalpindi Pindiz vs Islamabad United | Rawalpindi | Day |
| Apr 23 | M35 | Lahore Qalandars vs Karachi Kings | Lahore | Night |
| Apr 24 | M36 | Islamabad United vs Peshawar Zalmi | Rawalpindi | Night |
| Apr 25 | M37 | Quetta Gladiators vs Karachi Kings | Lahore | Day |
| Apr 25 | M38 | Lahore Qalandars vs Hyderabad Kingsmen | Lahore | Night |
| Apr 26 | M39 | Rawalpindi Pindiz vs Peshawar Zalmi | Rawalpindi | Day |
| Apr 26 | M40 | Islamabad United vs Multan Sultans | Rawalpindi | Night |
Playoffs
| Date | Match | Stage | Venue | D/N |
| Apr 28 | M41 | Qualifier (1st vs 2nd) | Rawalpindi | Night |
| Apr 29 | M42 | Eliminator 1 (3rd vs 4th) | Lahore | Night |
| May 1 | M43 | Eliminator 2 (Loser Q vs Winner E1) | Lahore | Night |
| May 3 | M44 | Final | Lahore | Night |
PSL 2026 Teams
This will be the first season in Pakistan Super League history featuring 8 teams. Before HBL PSL 2026, the Pakistan Cricket Board announced two new teams. For the league stage, the eight teams have been divided into two groups of four teams each.
Group A
- Lahore Qalandars: Defending champions Lahore Qalandars have seen a remarkable improvement in their performance over the past few seasons having won three of the last four seasons and becoming one of the most successful teams in PSL history.
- Karachi Kings: Karachi Kings, who won the PSL 2020, will play the upcoming season under the captaincy of Australian batter David Warner.
- Quetta Gladiators: The Quetta Gladiators have also won the league title once. In the HBL PSL 2026 Saud Shakeel will lead the team.
- Hyderabad Kingsmen: The Hyderabad Kingsmen are one of two new teams joining the Pakistan Super League. This will be their first appearance in the HBL PSL 2026. Their fans will be hoping for a strong start in their debut season.
Group B
- Islamabad United: Islamabad United, the inaugural winners of the Pakistan Super League, are also one of the most successful teams in the league’s history. The United won the title three times (2016, 2018, 2024).
- Peshawar Zalmi: PSL 2017 winners, Peshawar Zalmi have failed to win the title again since their maiden title win. However, under the captaincy of Babar Azam, fans will be hoping for a good performance from them in the BL PSL 2026.
- Multan Sultans: The Sultans franchise was auctioned after previous owner Ali Tareen opted not to renew the lease. The new franchise, the Stallionz, was acquired in January by a new investor and has decided to rename the franchise to Multan Sultans.
- Rawalpindi Pindiz: After strong bids for the Hyderabad and Sialkot franchises, the Pakistan Cricket Board also opened bidding for the Multan-based team. Following its acquisition by Welee Technologies, the franchise moved from Multan to Rawalpindi and was renamed Rawalpindi Pindiz.
PSL 2026 Venues
| Venue | City | Key Matches | Phases Hosted |
| Gaddafi Stadium | Lahore | Opening match, Eliminator 1, Eliminator 2, and the Final – 14 matches hosted | Phase 1, Phase 3, Phase 4, Playoffs |
| Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium | Rawalpindi | Home ground of Islamabad United and Rawalpindi Pindiz; hosts Qualifier – 11 matches hosted | Phase 1, Phase 4, Playoff |
| Multan Cricket Stadium | Multan | Multan Sultans will play matches here – 6 matches hosted | Phase 1 |
| National Stadium | Karachi | Home matches for Karachi Kings and Hyderabad Kingsmen – 7 matches hosted | Phase 2, Phase 3 |
| Iqbal Stadium | Faisalabad | PSL matches hosted here for the first time – 6 matches hosted | Phase 2, Phase 3 |
| Arbab Niaz Stadium | Peshawar | PSL matches hosted here for the first time – 1 match hosted | Phase 1 |
Key Players to Watch in HBL PSL 2026
Sahibzada Farhan: Sahibzada Farhan had an outstanding performance in the recent T20 World Cup 2026. He was the highest run-scorer of the tournament, scoring 383 runs with two superb centuries, keeping his strike rate above 160. Farhan is definitely a player to watch out for in the HBL PSL 2026.
Babar Azam: Pakistan star batter Babar Azam has a good experience of playing in this league. He has scored 3792 runs in 100 PSL matches at an average of 44.61. Although his performance in the recently concluded T20 World Cup was not good. But fans will have high expectations of him to perform well in the league.
Shaheen Afridi: Shaheen Afridi has single-handedly won matches for the team in the Pakistan Super League many times. He has taken a total of 122 wickets at an economy rate of 7.97 in the 84 PSL matches played so far. He can once again show his prime form in the league.
Steve Smith: Steve Smith will feature in the Pakistan Super League for the first time. He has been in excellent form in BBL 2025-26 earlier this year. In which, Smith scored 299 runs in just 6 matches at a strike rate of over 167. He will definitely be a must-watch player in this league.
Sameer Minhas: Samir Minhas is a future star of Pakistan cricket who has impressed with his performances at U19 level. He performed well in the ICC Under-19 World Cup 2026, scoring 197 runs in five matches at an average of 65.66. Sameer will be seen playing for Islamabad United in HBL PSL 2026.
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Where to Watch PSL 2026
HBL PSL 2026 matches will be broadcast live in Pakistan on PTV Sports, Ten Sports, and Geo Super. While Fans can also use the Daraz app and Tamasha for digital streaming.
HBL PSL 2026 TV/Live Streaming for International Viewers
| Country/Region | TV Broadcast | Live Streaming |
| India | – | Sports Central (Youtube) |
| Australia | Fox Sports | Kayo Sports |
| United Kingdom | Sky Sports Cricket | Sky Go App |
| Middle East | Etisalat (CricLife Max) | Starzplay |
| USA & North America | Willow TV | Willow TV App |
| South Africa & Sub-Saharan Africa | SuperSport | SuperSport App |
PSL 2026 Format
With the addition of two new teams in the Pakistan Super League in 2026, a total of eight teams will be playing in the league. Due to the arrival of new teams, a new format will be implemented in the league. According to which a total of 44 matches will be played in the league.
All teams will be divided into two groups of four teams each. Teams in the same group will play a double round Robin format (6 matches each team) and against the other group, teams will play in a single round Robin format (4 matches each team). Thus, every team will play a total of 10 matches in the group stage.
The top four teams advance to the playoffs. The playoffs will be played in the form of a Qualifier, Eliminator 1, Eliminator 2 and the Final. The final will will take place on May 3 at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore.
FAQ Questions
When does PSL 2026 start?
The PSL 2026 is scheduled to start on 26 March 2026. The defending champions, Lahore Qalandars will face Hyderabad Kingsmen in the opening match at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore.
When is the PSL 2026 final?
The PSL 2026 final will take place on Sunday, 3 May 2026 at Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore.
How many matches are in PSL 2026?
There are 44 matches scheduled for the PSL 2026.
Who are the two new teams in PSL 2026?
Hyderabad Kingsmen and Rawalpindi are the new Teams in the PSL 2026. They will feature in the Pakistan Super League for the first time in the 2026 edition.
Where to watch PSL 2026?
HBL PSL 2026 matches will be broadcast live in Pakistan on PTV Sports, Ten Sports, and Geo Super. While Fans can also use the Daraz app and Tamasha for live streaming.
Who are the defending champions of PSL?
Lahore Qalandars are the defending champions of the PSL. Qalandars won their third title by defeating Quetta Gladiators by 6 wickets in the PSL 2025 final.
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