Who will win the T20 World Cup 2026? Check details

The cricket fans have fully prepared for the upcoming ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026. The tournament will start on February 7 and run to March 8, in which 20 teams will compete. India and Sri Lanka will host the tournament. There will be five venues in India and three in Sri Lanka for the tournament's 55 matches, which will include 40 group stage games, 12 Super-8 games, two semifinals, and the finals.

T20 World Cup 2026 Groups 

The 20 teams have been divided into 4 groups of 5 each. Group A includes defending champion India, along with archrivals Pakistan, the USA, the Netherlands, and Namibia. Group B includes co-host Sri Lanka, Australia, Ireland, Oman, and Zimbabwe. England, Scotland, Nepal, the West Indies, and Italy are in Group C; South Africa, New Zealand, Afghanistan, the UAE, and Canada are in Group D.

The first match of this T20 World Cup will be played between Pakistan and the Netherlands in Colombo on February 07. During the group stage, fans can watch triple headers in a day. The first match will start at 11:00 AM IST, the second will start at 3:00 PM IST, and the third game of the day will start at 7:00 PM IST. 

The group stage will run from February 7 to 20. Each team will play four group-stage matches, after which the top two teams from each group will progress to the Super 8 stage, where once again 8 teams will be divided into two groups of four each. The Super-8 round will run from February 21 to March 1. The top two teams from both groups of the Super 8 stage will advance to the semi-finals, which will be held on March 04 & 05. The T20 World Cup 2026 final will be held on March 08. 

Teams Preview

India is the defending champion of the tournament and will have the opportunity to become the first host nation to win the title. The Suryakumar Yadav-led side, India, has a lot of match winners, which increases the Men in Blue’s chances of winning the title. Team India will start their group stage campaign against the USA on February 07, followed by Namibia on February 12, Pakistan on February 15, and the Netherlands on February 18.

India’s group stage fixtures

When & where will the India vs Pakistan match be?

The marquee match of the tournament will be played on 15 February in R. Premadasa Stadium, colombo at 7:00 PM, where India will take on Pakistan. However, it is still unconfirmed whether the Pakistan team will enter the field against India or not, as per their government’s decision to boycott this match. 

Other contenders

Australia, as usual, is the genuine contender, despite the fact that they are entering without their ace bowlers. Apart from them, New Zealand, South Africa, England, and Pakistan are the dark horses and are expected to go for the long run throughout the tournament. 

Dark horses

The 2014 edition champion & co-host Sri Lanka, 2-time winner West Indies (2012 & 2016), and 2024 edition semi-finalist Afghanistan are not looking like contenders, but they can upset some giant teams and have the potential to go far in the tournament.  

Mighty teams

Scotland will play in the World Cup, which they never prepared for. The ICC replaced Scotland with Bangladesh when the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) refused to travel to India for the World Cup.
Italy will play for the very first time in T20 World Cup history. Apart from them, the Netherlands, Namibia, the USA, Nepal, Canada, Oman, and Ireland have been playing the T20 format for a long time, and no giant team will take them lightly. Especially the USA, which defeated Pakistan in the previous edition, wants to recreate that moment.