T20 World Cup preview | The time has come for cricket’s rapid-fire festival

Get ready for the ICC T20 World Cup's thrilling 10th edition, featuring 20 teams across India and Sri Lanka.

Under the skies over Colombo, Kolkata and Mumbai, a championship will step into its 10th edition on Saturday (February 7, 2026). The ICC T20 World Cup’s latest chapter will find its opening pages through three contests being staged at far-flung cities.

Pakistan will take on Netherlands at Colombo, West Indies will lock horns with Scotland at Kolkata, and from 7 p.m., India will face off against the United States of America at Mumbai. Over a month, 20 teams will criss-cross India and to some extent Sri Lanka, as 55 games will be held, including the final on March 8.

A tournament that had its tentative maiden foray in 2007, one that M.S. Dhoni’s men owned in style, is now a robust fixture in the ICC calendar. Defending champion India obviously has an edge but playing at home does not exactly promise the cup as Rohit Sharma’s men learnt it the hard way during the 2023 50-over World Cup final at Ahmedabad. It is a thin line that splits hope and heartbreak.

Still, the Men in Blue, relishing a prosperous run in T20Is, will fancy their chances of being on the victor’s podium. Besides focusing on the field, off it, captain Suryakumar Yadav has the onerous task of dealing with queries focusing on international diplomacy. The backdrop has been soured with the removal of Bangladesh and Pakistan’s current decision of boycotting the contest against India in Colombo.

The championship that has never been a monopoly of any team, however, has remained elusive for South Africa and New Zealand. Skippers Aiden Markram and Mitchell Santner have a trophy-gap to plug. Markram came agonisingly close before India pulled ahead in the 2024 final at Bridgetown. Interestingly both South Africa and New Zealand prevailed in Tests in India, results that should bolster confidence even if T20Is and Tests are diverse formats.

The latest edition also marks the charge of a new generation as stars like Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Steve Smith and Kane Williamson are missing through a combination of retirements and omissions. Men like Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma can script a fresh legacy.