The European T20 Premier League has garnered international support from cricket fans through Cricket Ireland and Rules Global. The inaugural European Twenty20 Premier League Season will see the legend of Indian cricket, Ravichandran Ashwin, participate in 2026.
Ravichandran Ashwin confirmed he would be playing in the ETPL. The European Twenty20 Premier League (ETPL), co-owned by Hollywood actor Abhishek Bachchan, starts on August 26th, 2026. In addition to being a player for the ETPL, Ravichandran Ashwin has a prominent role with one of the franchises known as the Dublin Guardians.
R. Ashwin to Lead Team Dublin in ETPL 2026
Ravichandran Ashwin has officially joined forces with legendary Indian cricketer Rahul Dravid after having been named as the new Franchise Owner of the team dubbed The Dublin Guardians.
Ravichandran Ashwin will serve as Captain of the Dublin Guardians and will play a substantial role in the ETPL 2026 season. The league consists of 6 teams, and Ashwin’s team will be competing with teams from Belfast, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Rotterdam, and Amsterdam.
R. Ashwin’s Captaincy Stats
Ravichandran Ashwin Has yet to be the India National Team captain at any point in his entire career. Over the course of his career, he has had the opportunity to captain multiple different T20 franchises and was the captain of Tamil Nadu for six matches. As captain of the Kings XI Punjab for 28 games, Ashwin had a win/loss ratio of 12 wins and 16 losses.
In the Tamil Nadu Premier League, however, Ashwin has had much more success. In the 2024 season, he captained the Dindigul Dragons to their first-ever championship.
It is his ability to think quickly about how to play the game and make decisions within seconds that would allow him to be such a great leader for the Dublin team. He will also be assisted by fellow IPL coach Rahul Dravid who worked with him previously at the Rajasthan franchise.
ETPL 2026 Format Details
The ETPL 2026 Journey will be an exciting spectacle for Ravichandran Ashwin as it has been modelled on large franchise tournaments like the IPL and PSL.
There are 33 matches in the league to be played in a single round-robin format. The top four teams from the points table after league play will then qualify for playoffs consisting of Qualifier 1, Eliminator, Qualifier 2 and Final match.
The schedule for the tournament is not totally set, but the ETPL 2026 will have Netherlands and Ireland as host countries. The final of the tournament is scheduled to take place in 2026 on September 20.
Start Date: August 26, 2026
Final: September 20, 2026
Venues: Netherlands and Ireland
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