Several experts on the Star Sports panel of IPL 2026 picked the top four teams that will finish as the four teams in the playoffs by the end of the season. Mumbai Indians is a common team in the list of every former cricketer.
In the 18 seasons of the IPL, many teams have made it to the playoffs, and almost every team, except Lucknow Super Giants, who has been a part of the IPL for the last four seasons, has appeared in at least one final.
The most successful franchises in the IPL include Chennai Super Kings and Mumbai Indians, who have won it five times in the history of the IPL. On the other hand, Kolkata Knight Riders (3), Royal Challengers Bangalore (1), Rajasthan Royals (1), Deccan Chargers (1), Sunrisers Hyderabad (1), and Gujarat Titans (1) have all won the IPL.
Punjab Kings, Lucknow Super Giants and Delhi Capitals are the three franchises that have not won the competition even once.
Mumbai Indians continue to remain in top four for IPL 2026
Mumbai Indians is a consistent part of the top 4 list of IPL franchises for all the experts. The panel of Star Sports experts included many stars like Faf du Plessis, Irfan Pathan, Harbhajan Singh, Aakash Chopra, Cheteshwar Pujara, Mohammad Kaif, Piyush Chawla, Hanuma Vihari, Saba Karim.
None of these experts missed out on picking Mumbai Indians as one of their four predicted franchises to make the playoffs. With a brilliant group of cricketers led by World Cup-winning captain Suryakumar Yadav and Hardik Pandya, the MI team is the strongest in IPL 2026.
Even former players who played in opposition teams in the IPL consistently picked Mumbai Indians as the best. This could also be a season for Rohit Sharma where the legend can make a comeback.
Former RCB captain backs defending champions for playoff spot in 2026
Royal Challengers Bangalore won the first IPL trophy in the history of the competition. They are led by youngster Rajat Patidar, who will be looking to defend the title for the first time in IPL 2026.
Former RCB captain Faf du Plessis did not fail to pick the defending champions as the last four teams in the IPL 2026 points table. Only players like Irfan Pathan, Harbhajan Singh, Cheteshwar Pujara and Hanuma Vihari did not make it to the final four.
Given his excellent performance with the bat after retiring from both formats of international cricket, Virat Kohli can once again be the top scorer.
Who are the top 4 finalists according to Star Sports experts?
While Mumbai Indians remained a consistent choice for the top four, there were no more buzz than RCB in the top four. However, two other spots were assigned to different franchises by different experts.
Players like Faf, former all-rounder Irfan Pathan, Harbhajan Singh, Akash Chopra, Mohammad Kaif, Piyush Chawla and Sanjay Bangar were selected in Punjab Kings. Only Varun Aaron and Lakshmipathy Balaji did not choose him.
Many others chose Kolkata Knight Riders, Chennai Super Kings and Sunrisers Hyderabad and some even chose Delhi Capitals. However, no one gave even the slightest chance to teams like Lucknow Super Giants and Gujarat Titans.
Star Sports experts select top 4 teams for IPL 2026
1. Faf – MI, RCB, PBKS, CSK or DC
2. Irfan – MI, DC, PBKS, RR
3. Harbhajan – MI, SRH, PBKS
4. Sky – MI, RCB, DC, PBKS
5. Pujara -MI, GT, CSK, KKR
6. Kaif – MI, RCB, PBKS, DC
7. Vihari – MI, SRH, DC, PBKS
8. Chawla – MI, RCB, KKR, PBKS
9. Saba Karim – MI, RCB, DC, CSK
10. Bangar – MI, RCB, PBKS, DC
11. Balaji – MI, RCB, CSK, SRH
12. Aaron – MI, RCB, SRH, CSK
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