NPL Playoffs Format Explained: How Teams Reach the Final

Every ball of the league stage points to four matches in five days. Eight teams play 28 league matches in NPL Season 3, and only the top four on the points table reach the playoffs at TU Ground, Kirtipur. Qualifier 1 is on Tuesday, 17 November, the Eliminator on Wednesday, 18 November, Qualifier 2 on Thursday, 19 November, and the Grand Finale on Saturday, 21 November — every one of them starting at 5:00 PM NST. Two routes lead to the final, one team gets a second chance, and one bad day ends a season.

League stage	Eight franchises, 28 matches, 7 games each, 26 October to 15 November 2026
Playoff cut	Top four sides on the points table
Qualifier 1	1st vs 2nd, Tuesday 17 November 2026, 5:00 PM NST
Eliminator	3rd vs 4th, Wednesday 18 November 2026, 5:00 PM NST
Qualifier 2	Loser of Qualifier 1 vs winner of Eliminator, Thursday 19 November 2026, 5:00 PM NST
Grand Finale	Winner of Qualifier 1 vs winner of Qualifier 2, Saturday 21 November 2026, 5:00 PM NST
Venue for all playoffs	TU Ground, Kirtipur

Four teams, four matches

Season 3 follows the same structure as the first two seasons: a single round-robin in which every team plays the other seven once, for 28 league matches in total, all at TU Ground, Kirtipur. A win is worth two points, and after the last league match on Sunday, 15 November, the top four teams advance. Rest days fall on 30 October, 4 November, 8 November and 11 November, with a gap day on 20 November before the final.

All 32 fixtures of the season (28 league matches plus four playoff matches) are played at the one venue, so there is no home advantage to chase and no travel fatigue to manage. Form at Kirtipur is the only form that matters, and the table after six matches already shows how tight the race is: Karnali lead with four points, four teams sit on two points, and three teams are still waiting for their first win.

Qualifier 1, Eliminator, Qualifier 2, Final

Qualifier 1 pairs the top two teams, first against second, on 17 November. Its winner goes straight to the Grand Finale on 21 November. Its loser is not out — that team drops into Qualifier 2 on 19 November for a second chance.

On 18 November, the Eliminator pairs third against fourth, and it is exactly what its name says: the loser goes home, the winner stays alive and meets the loser of Qualifier 1 in Qualifier 2. Whoever wins Qualifier 2 meets the Qualifier 1 winner in the final.

Recent seasons show how each route works. In Season 2, Kathmandu finished third in the league with ten points but fourth overall after losing the Eliminator, bowled out for 111 against Lumbini’s 112 for 6. In Season 1, Janakpur reached the final through Qualifier 2, chasing 119 to win by two wickets on 19 December 2024, then beat Sudurpaschim by five wickets in the final. Lumbini won Season 2 the same way the table rewards: by finishing high enough to get two bites at the final.

How ties are broken

When teams finish level on points, the tie-break order is most wins, then net run rate, then head-to-head result, then fair play. Net run rate is the average runs per over a team scores minus the average runs per over it concedes, so big wins and heavy defeats both leave a mark long after the points are counted.

Abandoned league matches give one point to each side, and there are no reserve days in the league stage — a fact Saturday’s rain threat made very real, with TU Ground under covers and no postponement announced for the double-header. Finishing position matters beyond pride: first and second get the Qualifier 1 safety net, while third and fourth face the Eliminator’s sudden death.

Where the race stands

After six matches, Karnali Yaks lead with four points and a net run rate of plus 0.533. Lumbini Lions sit second on two points with a net run rate of plus 4.599, the best in the league, followed by Chitwan Rhinos on two points at plus 0.400, Janakpur Bolts on two points at minus 0.041, and Sudurpaschim Royals on two points at minus 1.430. Biratnagar Kings, Kathmandu Gorkhas and Pokhara Avengers are all still on zero points.

Twenty-two league matches remain, including Saturday’s double-header (Lumbini against Chitwan at 12:30 PM NST and Sudurpaschim against Biratnagar at 5:00 PM NST), and the table will change shape many times before 15 November. What will not change is the prize for finishing in the top four: a place in the four matches that decide the season.