The Indian Premier League is all set to begin from 9th April 2021 as per the schedule released by the governing council. The tournament is set to return to India after two years. The matches will take place at six venues namely Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Delhi, Bengaluru, and Ahmedabad. However, every game will be held at a neutral venue with the playoffs and final to be played at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.

The first half of the IPL will be played in closed doors. A decision would be taken on crowd entry during the latter half of the tournament. There will be eleven double-headers this season with games starting at 3:30 PM and 7:30 PM respectively. The men in Blue and Gold will play five matches at Chennai, four matches at Delhi, three matches at Bengaluru, and two matches at Kolkata during the league phase.

MI's schedule for IPL 2021

Defending champions Mumbai Indians will be taking on Royal Challengers Bangalore in the inaugural match at Chennai. Both teams had some fierce and intense encounters between them during the previous IPL season with one going all the way to a Super Over. MI and RCB have faced each other in a total of 29 games out of which Mumbai has emerged victorious 19 times.

Mumbai Indians will continue to stay in Chennai where they will face two-time IPL winners Kolkata Knight Riders on 13th April and 2016 champions Sunrisers Hyderabad on 17th April. MI will then play their final two games in Chennai against Delhi Capitals on 20th April and Punjab Kings on 23rd April before heading to Delhi.

The Rohit Sharma-led side will play their first afternoon fixture against the Rajasthan Royals on 29th April. Mumbai Indians will then resume their rivalry with Chennai Super Kings on 1st May 2021 which is also celebrated as Maharashtra Day. It will also mark the end of the first half of Mumbai Indians' campaign. Their final two games in Delhi will be the reverse fixtures against Sunrisers Hyderabad on 4th May and Rajasthan Royals on 8th May.

The 5-time IPL champions will then travel to Bangalore where they will face Kolkata Knight Riders on 10th May, Punjab Kings on 13th May which will also be their second afternoon game. This will be followed by a fixture against three-time champions Chennai Super Kings on 16th May.

MI will eventually head to Kolkata where they won their first two IPL trophies back in 2013 and 2015. Royal Challengers Bangalore and Delhi Capitals will be their opponents at Eden Gardens. After facing RCB on 20th May, the match against DC on 23rd May will be MI's final fixture in the league phase of the tournament.

The IPL title defense begins on 9th April 2021. Click here for our IPL 2021 schedule.