NPL 2026 Live Today (26 Oct): Match Times & TV
Nepal Premier League Season 3 opens on Monday 26 October 2026 with Lumbini Lions vs Sudurpaschim Royals at 5:00 PM NST in Kirtipur: the TV channel, the NetTV stream, start times worldwide and the live score.
Season window: October 26–November 21, 2026 · Reviewed 24 October 2026
NPL 2026 live on 26 October means one match and one start time: Lumbini Lions against Sudurpaschim Royals at 5:00 PM Nepal time, under lights at the TU International Cricket Ground in Kirtipur. It is Match 1 of Season 3, a repeat of last season's final, and it opens a 32-match tournament that runs to the grand finale on 21 November. Lumbini begin as defending champions. Sudurpaschim arrive having lost both of the league's first two finals, one of them to these same opponents.
This page covers the opener only, with nothing left vague: the television channel in Nepal, the NetTV stream that carries the match worldwide, the start time converted for India, Pakistan, the Gulf, the United Kingdom and the US East Coast, and the free live score and highlights routes for anyone who cannot watch. Everything below is as announced for Season 3 as of 24 October 2026.
Quick answer
- Today's match: Lumbini Lions vs Sudurpaschim Royals, Match 1 of Season 3, 5:00 PM NST at TU Ground, Kirtipur.
- TV in Nepal: Himalaya Sports (Himalaya Television Network) shows every Season 3 match live.
- Streaming worldwide: NetTV app and web platform. Season pass Rs 400 in Nepal, Rs 600 in the Middle East, US$10 in the USA, Europe, Australia, Japan and Korea.
- Start times abroad: 4:45 PM IST · 4:15 PM PKT · 3:15 PM GST · 11:15 AM GMT · 7:15 AM ET.
- Free legal options: ball-by-ball live scores and post-match highlights. No free legal live stream exists.
NPL 2026 Live on 26 October: Today's Match
The season starts with the fixture the fixture list saved for first: Lumbini Lions against Sudurpaschim Royals, Match 1 of 32, at the Tribhuvan University International Cricket Ground in Kirtipur. Every match of Season 3 is played at this one ground, and the opener is an evening game under lights, first ball at 5:00 PM Nepal time. Rohit Paudel captains Lumbini; Dipendra Singh Airee captains Sudurpaschim.
The pairing carries last season with it. Lumbini beat Sudurpaschim in the Season 2 final to take the title, and Sudurpaschim had already lost the Season 1 final to Janakpur Bolts, so the Royals start a third campaign still chasing a first trophy while the Lions start theirs as the team everyone measures against. The points table is blank, the season has no form guide yet, and the first two points of 2026 go to one of the two sides that finished last season on top.
Ground and ticket facts for anyone heading to Kirtipur: the Cricket Association of Nepal set league-match ticket prices at Rs 500 for general admission and Rs 1,000 for premium seats, sold through eSewa, and the opening-day allocation sold out within half an hour of release. DRS is in use for Season 3 matches. The full 32-fixture list, with every date and start time, is on the schedule page, and both squads are listed on the teams page.
The wider frame: Season 3 runs from 26 October to 21 November with 28 league matches, then two Qualifiers and an Eliminator on 17–19 November and the final on 21 November, all of them in Kirtipur. The tournament carries ICC official T20 status and every match is recognised as a List A T20. Tonight's winner takes the season's first two points, and the loser's season is one match old with six league games left to repair it.
Watch the Opener on TV in Nepal: Himalaya Sports
Television coverage inside Nepal belongs to Himalaya Sports, the sports channel of the Himalaya Television Network. The network won the Season 3 linear TV rights in the Cricket Association of Nepal's 7 September 2026 awards, a Rs 14.64 crore deal that puts every match of the tournament, the opener included, live on the channel. Viewers in Nepal will find it through their regular cable and DTH services.
The channel's studio coverage is led by analyst Shoaib Akhtar, and this season adds Maithili-language commentary alongside the existing coverage. One boundary matters for anyone reading this outside Nepal: the television rights are Nepal-only. No TV broadcaster in any other country has been announced for Season 3, so outside Nepal the opener is a streaming match, covered in the next section.
Stream the Opener Worldwide on NetTV
NetTV holds the worldwide over-the-top rights for Season 3, awarded for Rs 18.04 crore, and its app and web platform are the official stream in every country, Nepal included. One purchase, the NPL Season 3 pass, covers the opener and all 31 matches after it. The pass costs Rs 400 including tax in Nepal and Rs 600 in the Middle East; the tier for the USA, Europe, Australia, Japan and Korea is US$10. For any other country, no price has been published and the NetTV in-app listing is the figure that applies.
Buying takes a few minutes: install the official NetTV app on Android or iPhone, or open the web platform, register, find the Nepal Premier League Season 3 package and pay by debit or credit card. Three published terms are worth knowing before you pay. The tournament pass is a separate purchase, so an existing NetTV subscription does not include it. Pass coupons are country-locked and non-refundable, so buy from the listing meant for your location. And the pass does not run on Smart TV or set-top box apps; the supported screens are phones, tablets and computers.
Local Start Times for Lumbini vs Sudurpaschim
Nepal time (NST, UTC+5:45) never changes for daylight saving, so the conversions below hold as printed. The United States is still on Eastern Daylight Time on 26 October, which puts the opener at 7:15 AM on the East Coast; after the US clocks change on 1 November, the same 5:00 PM start in Kirtipur becomes 6:15 AM ET for the rest of the season.
| Match | NST | IST | PKT | GST | GMT | ET |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lumbini Lions v Sudurpaschim Royals | 5:00 PM | 4:45 PM | 4:15 PM | 3:15 PM | 11:15 AM | 7:15 AM |
One caution if you have seen an earlier start quoted: the Cricket Association of Nepal revised the season's start times on 20 October, moving evening matches from 4:30 PM to 5:00 PM Nepal time. Previews written before that change may still show the old slot.
Tickets for 26 October at TU Ground
Every Season 3 match is played at the one ground, the TU International Cricket Ground in Kirtipur, and tickets are sold through eSewa. The Cricket Association of Nepal priced league matches at Rs 500 for general admission and Rs 1,000 for premium seats. The Eliminator and the final cost more, at Rs 1,000 general and Rs 2,000 premium, and a season pass covering the whole tournament was priced at Rs 15,000. Sales opened on eSewa on 22 October.
A ground ticket and the NetTV pass are separate products: the ticket puts you in the stands, the pass puts the match on your screen. Check the date on the listing before paying, because tickets are sold per fixture and this week runs four matchdays in four days. Demand for tonight is already proven, with the opening-day allocation gone in half an hour; anyone still looking should use eSewa's own listings rather than resale offers.
Live Score and Highlights for the Opener
If you cannot watch, the free routes follow the whole match. The live scores page carries ball-by-ball coverage of the opener: every wicket, boundary and run-rate change as it happens, with no account and no charge. On a working Monday evening in Nepal, or a Monday morning in the Gulf and Europe, it is the fastest legal way to track the game.
After the match, the videos page posts the highlights: the wickets, the big overs and the finish, cut down to the passages that decided the result. Between the live score and the highlights, the opener can be followed in full without the stream; the stream itself is there whenever you want all 32 matches live.
The same live-scores page keeps the full Season 3 schedule in one place, and the points table on this site updates after every verified result, so tonight's winner will sit at the top of the season's first table within hours of the final ball.
Frequently asked questions
Which NPL match is on today, 26 October?
Lumbini Lions vs Sudurpaschim Royals, Match 1 of NPL Season 3, at the TU International Cricket Ground in Kirtipur. It is a rematch of the Season 2 final: Lumbini are the defending champions and Sudurpaschim finished as runners-up.
What time does the opening match start?
5:00 PM Nepal time (NST) on Monday 26 October 2026. That is 4:45 PM in India, 4:15 PM in Pakistan, 3:15 PM in the Gulf, 11:15 AM in the United Kingdom and 7:15 AM on the US East Coast.
Where can I watch Lumbini vs Sudurpaschim live?
In Nepal, on Himalaya Sports television. Everywhere, including Nepal, the match streams on the NetTV app and web platform with the Season 3 pass, which costs Rs 400 in Nepal and covers all 32 matches. No other broadcaster has been announced for Season 3.
Where is the live score for the opener?
The live scores page on this site carries ball-by-ball coverage of the opener, free and with no account needed. Post-match highlights go up on the videos page after the game.
Is there an opening ceremony before the match?
No opening ceremony has been announced for Season 3 (as of 24 October 2026). The published schedule lists the match itself, with the first ball at 5:00 PM NST.
Conclusion
Season 3 opens with one match under lights in Kirtipur: Lumbini Lions vs Sudurpaschim Royals at 5:00 PM NST on Monday 26 October. In Nepal it is on Himalaya Sports; everywhere it streams on NetTV with a single pass that covers the whole tournament; and the free live score follows every ball. The season continues on Tuesday with its first double-header, Biratnagar Kings vs Chitwan Rhinos at 12:30 PM and Karnali Yaks vs Janakpur Bolts at 5:00 PM. Country-by-country viewing guides for the full season sit on the where-to-watch hub.
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