The Ranji Trophy will once again be played in two phases with the opening round starting on October 11 while the 2026-27 domestic season will commence with the Duleep Trophy starting August 23, the BCCI announced on Wednesday. The BCCI will be organizing 1788 games across age-group and senior cricket segments during the season, which include U-16, U-19, U-23, senior level for men and U-15, U-19, U-23 and senior level for the women. Keeping up with the demand of time, the U-23 white ball competition and the Inter-zonal University meet for Vizzy Trophy will be played in T20 format going forward.

"The 2026-27 domestic season reflects the BCCI's continued commitment to building a strong and competitive domestic structure while ensuring a balanced progression across formats and categories," the board stated in release. The Duleep Trophy, which is back in zonal format, will be played between August 23 to September 10. The entire tournament will be held at BCCI's Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru. The Irani Cup between Ranji Trophy champions Jammu and Kashmir and Rest of India will be played from October 1 to 5 in Srinagar.