Michael Vaughan, Alastair Cook predict IPL 2026 winners

Published - 25 Mar 2026, 20:54 IST | Updated - 25 Mar 2026, 20:54 IST

Former England captain Michael Vaughan and Sir Alastair Cook have made their predictions on who will win the 2026 Indian Premier League (IPL).

Vaughan, who captained England to the famous Ashes win in 2005, has backed Mumbai Indians (MI) to win their sixth IPL after not winning the trophy for six years. The last time the Mumbai-based outfit won the IPL title was in 2020, when they defeated Delhi Capitals in the final.

“Mumbai Indians are winning it this year. They haven’t won it in a few [years] but they have got an incredible team,” Vaughan said on The Overlap Cricket YouTube channel.

Vaughan’s former England teammate Cook, on the other hand, has called Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) to win their second consecutive title in 2026. Should they accomplish the feat, they would become only the third side in IPL history to go back-to-back after Chennai Super Kings (2010 and 2011) and MI (2019 and 2020).

Cook also spoke highly of RCB head coach Andy Flower, under whom he played for several years for England.

“I am going with RCB. They are going back-to-back. I am trusting [Andy] Flower,” Cook said in response to Vaughan’s prediction.

Meanwhile, Vaughan and Cook’s podcast partners and former England players Phil Tufnell and David Lloyd backed Chennai Super Kings (CSK) to win their sixth title. Having last won the showpiece tournament in 2023, CSK would want a much better campaign than 2025 where they finished bottom of the standings on just eight points.

In the 18-year history of the IPL, only three teams have won multiple titles. Those being the aforementioned MI and CSK along with Kolkata Knight Riders, who have lifted the IPL trophy three times.

Defending champions RCB will kickstart the 2026 IPL season with a home game against Sunrisers Hyderabad on Saturday, March 28 at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium. MI are scheduled to open their campaign a day later on home turf, taking on KKR at the Wankhede Stadium.