The IPL Committee terminated the Kochi Tuskers Kerala franchise after it breached the BCCI's terms of conditions. Under the terms of the agreement, each franchise has to submit a bank guarantee every year that covers the fee payable to the BCCI. The team, founded in 2010, was bought for ₹ 1,550 crore and the consortium has to pay a bank guarantee of ₹ 1.56 billion every year until 2020. Despite this, the Tuskers' former players participated in this season's competition after being included in the players auction on 4 February 2012. On 13 January, the BCCI asked the international players of Kochi Tuskers Kerala to register the individual court cases against the owners of the Kochi IPL team with the BCCI included as a party to each case.
The opening ceremony took place on the evening of 3 April 2012 in the YMCA College of Physical Education, Chennai. The ceremony was designed by Wizcraft Entertainment, and began at 19:30 IST, lasting almost two and half hours. The tickets for the ceremony were priced at ₹1,500 (US$16) and were available online at the official website of the IPL from 16 March 2012. Similar to the previous versions, the captains of the nine participating teams took the "MCC Spirit of Cricket" pledge. Various Bollywood actors, dancers, and musicians performed in the ceremony. The event was planned to be held at M. A. Chidambaram Stadium, but was shifted to the YMCA College of Physical Education ground. The capacity of the YMCA college was lesser than that of the M. A. Chidambaram Stadium, and this caused disappointment. Tamil Nadu Cricket Association said that the decision was made because the opening match was to be played at the M. A. Chidambaram Stadium, and thus they cannot have opening ceremony in it due to risk of the cricket ground getting damaged by the performances. Sabbas Joseph, director of Wizcraft Entertainment, talking about the ceremony stated that, "There will be good things, lots of entertainment and cricket. It's the first time that such a large-scale, separate concert is being organised for the IPL, so big things have been planned." The ceremony included some performances by Amitabh Bachchan, Priyanka Chopra, Kareena Kapoor, Salman Khan, Prabhu Deva, Colonial Cousins, and Katy Perry. The opening game was held in the M. A. Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai, the home venue of the reigning champions Chennai Super Kings. The closing ceremony was also held at the same venue. The ceremony started at 19:30 IST, however the gates were opened at 17:00 IST. A huge cut out poster of Salman Khan was kept at the YMCA ground prior to the ceremony. The ceremony was hosted by Amitabh Bachchan who had undergone two abdominal surgeries in February 2012. Earlier he had conveyed a message via Twitter saying, "April 3rd is the day for the opening. Preparing for it already. Getting back into the grind." Media reports suggested that Bachchan will be dancing, however Joseph said that this is unlikely to happen. He began the ceremony by reciting a poem, "If I were to be born again" by Prasoon Joshi. Later, the Colonial Cousins, along with South African band First Project and DJ Ravi Drums, performed in the ceremony. It was followed by Priyanka Chopra performing with cricketers like Harbhajan Singh on various songs from her films. Prabhu Deva also performed on songs from his films such as Wanted and Hum Se Hai Muqablah. After that, few members of the Chennai Super Kings' squad arrived on the stage, and Chopra joined them. Later Kareena Kapoor danced to songs from her films Ra.One and Agent Vinod. The performances of Chopra and Kapoor were choreographed by Shiamak Davar and his companions. After the dance performances, the captains of the nine teams took the "MCC Spirit of Cricket" pledge. Captain of the defending champions, M.S. Dhoni placed the trophy on the podium and it was followed by the chairman of IPL, Rajiv Shukla crediting the players, franchise owners, supporting staff and the spectators for the success of IPL. He then formally opened the 2012 IPL, saying, "It gives me a great pleasure to flag off the fifth edition of the DLF Indian Premier League, an arena where quality international and domestic cricketers take part in intense contest of strategy and skill. IPL is a platform where talent meets opportunity." Salman Khan performed on songs from his films Ready, Bodyguard, Wanted, Partner and Jab Pyaar Kiya To Darna Kiya. American pop star Katy Perry closed the ceremony performing "Firework" and "California Gurls". The ceremony ended with fireworks.
The top four teams qualified for the playoffs , C refers to the eventual winners of the tournament, RU to the runners-up
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | NR | Pts | NRR |
| 1 | Delhi Daredevils (3rd) | 16 | 11 | 5 | 0 | 22 | 0.617 |
| 2 | Kolkata Knight Riders (C) | 16 | 10 | 5 | 1 | 21 | 0.561 |
| 3 | Mumbai Indians (4th) | 16 | 10 | 6 | 0 | 20 | −0.100 |
| 4 | Chennai Super Kings (RU) | 16 | 8 | 7 | 1 | 17 | 0.100 |
| 5 | Royal Challengers Bangalore | 16 | 8 | 7 | 1 | 17 | −0.022 |
| 6 | Kings XI Punjab | 16 | 8 | 8 | 0 | 16 | −0.216 |
| 7 | Rajasthan Royals | 16 | 7 | 9 | 0 | 14 | 0.201 |
| 8 | Deccan Chargers | 16 | 4 | 11 | 1 | 9 | −0.509 |
| 9 | Pune Warriors India | 16 | 4 | 12 | 0 | 8 | −0.551 |
Note: Results listed are according to the home (horizontal) and visitor (vertical) teams., Note: Click on a result to see a summary of the match. Note: The total points at the end of each group match are listed., Note: Click on the points (group matches) or W/L (playoffs) to see the match summary. Mumbai Indians won the toss and elected to field. Delhi Daredevils won the toss and elected to field. , Rain-shortened match. Match started at 22:30 and reduced to 12 overs per side. Mumbai Indians won the toss and elected to field. Kings XI Punjab won the toss and elected to field. Delhi Daredevils won the toss and elected to field. Deccan Chargers won the toss and elected to field. Kolkata Knight Riders won the toss and elected to field. Pune Warriors India won the toss and elected to bat. Deccan Chargers won the toss and elected to bat. Royal Challengers Bangalore won the toss and elected to field. Delhi Daredevils won the toss and elected to field. Rajasthan Royals won the toss and elected to field. Royal Challengers Bangalore won the toss and elected to bat. Kings XI Punjab won the toss and elected to field. Rajasthan Royals won the toss and elected to bat. Chennai Super Kings won the toss and elected to bat. Kolkata Knight Riders won the toss and elected to field. Rajasthan Royals won the toss and elected to bat. , Ajinkya Rahane smashed 6 consecutive fours off an S. Aravind over – which was a first for the IPL. Delhi Daredevils won the toss and elected to field. Deccan Chargers won the toss and elected to bat. Pune Warriors India won the toss and elected to bat. , Chris Gayle created the record for the most number of consecutive sixes during a match in IPL history where he hit Rahul Sharma for 5 consecutive sixes in a single over. Kings XI Punjab won toss and elected to bat. Deccan Chargers won the toss and elected to bat. Pune Warriors India won the toss and elected to field. Royal Challengers Bangalore won the toss and elected to field. Rajasthan Royals won the toss and elected to bat. Delhi Daredevils won the toss and elected to field. Mumbai Indians won the toss and elected to bat. Kolkata Knight Riders won the toss and elected to field. , The match had a delayed start, but was not shortened. Rajasthan Royals won the toss and elected to field. , The Man of the Match award was originally given to AB de Villiers, who then presented it to KP Appanna. Pune Warriors India won the toss and elected to bat. Match abandoned without a toss due to rain. Kings XI Punjab won the toss and elected to bat. Royal Challengers Bangalore won the toss and elected to field. , Match abandoned without a ball bowled due to rain. Deccan Chargers won the toss and elected to bat. Mumbai Indians won the toss and elected to field. Kings XI Punjab won the toss and elected to bat. Kolkata Knight Riders won the toss and elected to bat. Delhi Daredevils won the toss and elected to bat. Mumbai Indians won the toss and elected to field. Chennai Super Kings won the toss and elected to bat. , The Man of the Match award was originally given to Gautam Gambhir, who then presented it to Debabrata Das. Deccan Chargers won the toss and elected to bat. Rajasthan Royals won the toss and elected to bat. Kings XI Punjab won the toss and elected to field. Mumbai Indians won the toss and elected to bat. Chennai Super Kings won the toss and elected to bat. Kolkata Knight Riders won the toss and elected to bat. Rajasthan Royals won the toss and elected to bat. Mumbai Indians won the toss and elected to field. Royal Challengers Bangalore won the toss and elected to field. Delhi Daredevils won the toss and elected to bat. Pune Warriors India won the toss and elected to bat. Deccan Chargers won the toss and elected to field. , Deccan Chargers were eliminated as a result of this match. Royal Challengers Bangalore won the toss and elected to field. Deccan Chargers won the toss and elected to bat. Chennai Super Kings won the toss and elected to field. , Pune Warriors India were eliminated as a result of this match. Pune Warriors India won the toss and elected to field. Mumbai Indians won the toss and elected to bat. Chennai Super Kings won the toss and elected to field. Rajasthan Royals won the toss and elected to bat. , Ajit Chandila (Rajasthan Royals) took a hat-trick. Deccan Chargers won the toss and elected to bat. Mumbai Indians won the toss and elected to field. , The match started at 16:50 due to rain, but was not shortened. Also play was stopped for 8 minutes during Mumbai's chase as one of the light towers stopped working. Chennai Super Kings won the toss and elected to field. Kings XI Punjab won the toss and elected to bat. , Delhi Daredevils qualified for the playoffs as a result of this match. Mumbai Indians won the toss and elected to field. Kings XI Punjab won the toss and elected to field. , Kolkata Knight Riders qualified for the playoffs as a result of this match. Delhi Daredevils won the toss and elected to field. Rajasthan Royals won the toss and elected to bat. , Rajasthan Royals were eliminated as a result of this match. Delhi Daredevils won the toss and elected to field. , Mumbai Indians qualified for the playoffs, Kings Xi Punjab were eliminated, and Delhi Daredevils advanced to Qualifier 1 as a result of this match. Kolkata Knight Riders won the toss and elected to bat. , Kolkata Knight Riders advanced to Qualifier 1 as a result of this match. Royal Challengers Bangalore won the toss and elected to field. , Chennai Super Kings qualified for the playoffs, and Royal Challengers Bangalore were eliminated as a result of this match. Rajasthan Royals won the toss and elected to bat.
| Visitor team → | CSK | DC | DD | KXIP | KKR | MI | PWI | RR | RCB |
| Home team ↓ | |||||||||
| Chennai Super Kings | Chennai10 runs | Chennai9 wickets | Punjab7 runs | Kolkata5 wickets | Mumbai8 wickets | Chennai13 runs | Chennai7 wickets | Chennai5 wickets | |
| Deccan Chargers | Chennai74 runs | Delhi9 wickets | Punjab25 runs | Kolkata5 wickets | Mumbai5 wickets | Deccan13 runs | Deccan5 wickets | Deccan9 runs | |
| Delhi Daredevils | Delhi8 wickets | Delhi5 wickets | Delhi5 wickets | Kolkata6 wickets | Delhi37 runs | Pune20 runs | Delhi1 run | Bengaluru21 runs | |
| Kings XI Punjab | Punjab6 wickets | Punjab4 wickets | Delhi6 wickets | Kolkata8 wickets | Mumbai4 wickets | Punjab7 wickets | Rajasthan43 runs | Bengaluru5 wickets | |
| Kolkata Knight Riders | Chennai5 wickets | Matchabandoned | Delhi8 wickets | Punjab2 runs | Mumbai27 runs | Kolkata7 runs | Kolkata5 wickets | Kolkata47 runs | |
| Mumbai Indians | Mumbai2 wickets | Mumbai5 wickets | Delhi7 wickets | Punjab6 wickets | Kolkata32 runs | Pune28 runs | Mumbai27 runs | Bengaluru9 wickets | |
| Pune Warriors India | Pune7 wickets | Deccan18 runs | Delhi8 wickets | Pune22 runs | Kolkata34 runs | Mumbai1 run | Rajasthan7 wickets | Bengaluru35 runs | |
| Rajasthan Royals | Chennai4 wickets | Rajasthan5 wickets | Delhi6 wickets | Rajasthan31 runs | Rajasthan22 runs | Mumbai10 wickets | Rajasthan45 runs | Bengaluru46 runs | |
| Royal Challengers Bengaluru | Matchabandoned | Bengaluru5 wickets | Bengaluru20 runs | Punjab4 wickets | Kolkata42 runs | Mumbai5 wickets | Bengaluru6 wickets | Rajasthan59 runs |
| Home team won | Visitor team won |
| Team | Group matches | Playoffs | |||||||||||||||||
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | Q1 | E | Q2 | F |
| Chennai Super Kings | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 8 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 11 | 11 | 13 | 15 | 17 | 17 | W | W | L |
| Deccan Chargers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 7 | 9 | |||
| Delhi Daredevils | 2 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 8 | 8 | 10 | 12 | 14 | 16 | 16 | 18 | 18 | 20 | 20 | 22 | L | L | |
| Kings XI Punjab | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 8 | 10 | 10 | 12 | 14 | 14 | 16 | 16 | |||
| Kolkata Knight Riders | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 8 | 9 | 11 | 13 | 15 | 17 | 17 | 17 | 19 | 21 | W | W | |
| Mumbai Indians | 2 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 8 | 8 | 10 | 12 | 14 | 14 | 16 | 18 | 18 | 20 | L | ||
| Pune Warriors India | 2 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | |||
| Rajasthan Royals | 2 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 10 | 12 | 12 | 14 | 14 | 14 | |||
| Royal Challengers Bengaluru | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 8 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 11 | 13 | 15 | 15 | 17 | 17 |
| Win | Loss | No result |
| 4 April 2012 20:00 (D/N) Scorecard |
| (H) Chennai Super Kings112 (19.5 overs) | v | Mumbai Indians115/2 (16.5 overs) |
| Suresh Raina 36 (26) Kieron Pollard 2/15 (4 overs) | Richard Levi 50 (35) Dwayne Bravo 1/14 (3 overs) |
| M. A. Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai Player of the match: Richard Levi (Mumbai) |
| 5 April 2012 20:00 (D/N) Scorecard |
| (H) Kolkata Knight Riders97/9 (12 overs) | v | Delhi Daredevils100/2 (11.1 overs) |
| Laxmi Shukla 26 (17) Morné Morkel 3/18 (3 overs) | Irfan Pathan 42* (20) Rajat Bhatia 1/7 (1.1 overs) |
| Eden Gardens, Kolkata Player of the match: Irfan Pathan (Delhi) |
| 6 April 2012 16:00 (D/N) Scorecard |
| Pune Warriors India129/9 (20 overs) | v | Mumbai Indians (H)101/9 (20 overs) |
| Steve Smith 39 (32) Lasith Malinga 2/16 (4 overs) | Dinesh Karthik 32 (32) Ashok Dinda 4/17 (4 overs) |
| Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai Player of the match: Steve Smith (Pune) |
| 6 April 2012 20:00 (D/N) Scorecard |
| (H) Rajasthan Royals191/4 (20 overs) | v | Kings XI Punjab160/9 (20 overs) |
| Ajinkya Rahane 98 (66) James Faulkner 2/41 (4 overs) | Mandeep Singh 34 (25) Kevon Cooper 3/25 (4 overs) |
| Sawai Mansingh Stadium, Jaipur Player of the match: Ajinkya Rahane (Rajasthan) |
| 7 April 2012 16:00 (D/N) Scorecard |
| (H) Royal Challengers Bangalore157/8 (20 overs) | v | Delhi Daredevils137/7 (20 overs) |
| AB de Villiers 64* (42) Doug Bracewell 3/32 (4 overs) | Naman Ojha 33 (26) Muttiah Muralitharan 4/25 (4 overs) |
| M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore Player of the match: AB de Villiers (Bangalore) |
| 7 April 2012 20:00 (D/N) Scorecard |
| Chennai Super Kings193/6 (20 overs) | v | Deccan Chargers (H)119 (17.1 overs) |
| Ravindra Jadeja 48 (29) Dale Steyn 2/25 (4 overs) | Cameron White 23 (16) Ravindra Jadeja 5/16 (4 overs) |
| ACA-VDCA Stadium, Visakhapatnam Player of the match: Ravindra Jadeja (Chennai) |
| 8 April 2012 16:00 (D/N) Scorecard |
On 15 March, it was announced that due to the municipal election in Delhi, the playoff schedule was being slightly altered. The sites of 22 and 23 May matches were changed, with Pune now hosting the first qualifier on 22 May and Bengaluru hosting the eliminator on 23 May. Had the Royal Challengers Bangalore qualified for the playoffs, they would play the match in Bengaluru, switching which venue hosts which match if necessary.
Kolkata Knight Riders won the toss and elected to bat.
Mumbai Indians won the toss and elected to field. , Mahendra Singh Dhoni hit James Franklin for the tournament's biggest six, 112 metres.
Delhi Daredevils won the toss and elected to field.
Kolkata Knight Riders won the toss and elected to field. , Kolkata Knight Riders won the IPL Trophy title for the first time.
Overall, 22,453 runs were scored at an average of 26.20. 857 wickets fell. Both the number of runs and of wickets were new IPL records. Six centuries were scored.
The leading run scorer of the league phase wore an orange cap while fielding.
The leading wicket taker of the league phase wore a purple cap while fielding.
The first matches of the season had recorded an average Television Viewership Rating (TVR) of 3.76, 18.7% less than the previous season. The viewership was also reportedly low for the opening ceremony with a rating of 1.3 TVR. The decline was attributed to the number of matches being played, as the count stands at 76 among 9 teams. The rating continued to fall as the cumulative number of people who tuned in to watch the first 16 games also declined from 127.40 million in 2011 to 122.44 million. However, despite this slow start, IPL 5 garnered a higher cumulative viewership than any previous edition of the IPL. The cumulative reach for 74 IPL 5 matches was recorded at 163 million against 162 million for 73 matches in IPL 4, and the final match had a higher reach than any previous final.
On 14 May 2012, an Indian news channel India TV aired a sting operation that accused five players involved in spot fixing. Reacting to the news, Chief manager of Indian Premier League Rajiv Shukla immediately suspended all five: Mohnish Mishra, Shalabh Srivastava, TP Sudhindra, Amit Yadav, and Abhinav Bali (none of whom had played international cricket). However, the report went on to claim that none of the cricketers were found guilty. On the reliability of the report, Rajat Sharma, the editor-in-chief of news channel India TV quoted that the channel had no doubts about the authenticity of the sting operation and prepared to go to court. Mohnish Mishra who was part of Pune Warriors India team for the season, admitted to have said that franchises pay black money, in a sting operation. Mishra was caught on tape saying that franchisees paid them black money and that he had received ₹15 million (US$160,000) from the later, among which ₹12 million (US$130,000) was black money. He was also suspended from his team.
9 April: Sharukh Khan, owner of the Kolkata Knight Riders, was served a notice by the Rajasthan Police for smoking in public. Khan was caught smoking on camera during a match between the Kolkata Knight Riders, the IPL team he owns, and the Rajasthan Royals on 8 April. , 16 May: Shahrukh Khan, owner of the Kolkata Knight Riders, received a five-year ban from the Wankhede Stadium for arguing with security at the ground after a match. , 18 May: Luke Pomersbach, a Royal Challengers Bangalore batsman, was arrested on charges of molesting an American woman. He was later granted interim bail. , 20 May: Rahul Sharma and Wayne Parnell, Pune Warriors India players, were detained by Mumbai Police along with hundreds at a rave party bust.
Source: Wikipedia