The wait is finally over in the T20 international sphere, as the tenth incarnation of the ICC T20 World Cup gets underway in India and Sri Lanka.
With more franchise cricket than ever before being played the world over, the chance to see the best on the planet battle it out for their national teams is a very appealing one, and there is plenty at stake over the coming weeks.
Formats in international cricket tournaments are always a key talking point, but with 20 teams participating in the 2026 T20 World Cup, some emerging and developing cricketing nations will get the chance to perform on the biggest stage and potentially cause some upsets.
While the platform could be set for shock results, the biggest hitters in world cricket will also be in the mix, with hosts India, along with the likes of South Africa, New Zealand, and Australia, all sure to have their say over the coming weeks.
This festival of cricket should be an incredible spectacle in both India and Sri Lanka, and a fascinating month of big hitting lies ahead.
Here are our 2026 ICC T20 World Cup tournament tips:
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Claim Welcome Bonus!ICC T20 World Cup Outright Winner
The allure of short form cricket in India continues to take hold and there is a feeling that they are pretty much unstoppable in this format at the moment.
Adding to the mix the fact that they are the hosts, playing in familiar conditions, in front of a passionate home crowd, there are plenty of things going for them at the moment.
Transitionally, they may well be in terms of the personnel on the pitch, but this Indian side is packed with talent and players who thrive in the big occasions, making them the firm favourites here.
There are a few teams who will fancy their chances of upsetting India on their day, and Australia is very much one of them.
Another country blessed with short form cricket options, Australia’s front footed style could be a perfect fit here in India.
Tournament preparations haven’t gone to plan necessarily, with injuries to key players and a series loss to Pakistan, but when the Australians are written off, they tend to become more dangerous.
They could sneak under the radar in this tournament, and they simply can never be written off.
The absence of a major trophy in short form men’s cricket continues to blight South Africa’s record and the Proteas will be desperate to put that right here.
Seldom have they had such a settled squad going into a big tournament, and the weapons they have with both bat and ball should hold up pretty well in Indian conditions.
Overcoming the mental block to winning a tournament like this could be their biggest hurdle, but this generation may not get a better chance to win a major title.
For England, the saturation of the global cricketing calendar gives punters a bit of a decision to make.
On paper, they have one of the most dangerous line ups in the competition and they have the fire power to beat anybody on their day.
In terms of form however, they continue to battle inconsistency, across all three formats and they have been known to implode at big tournaments.
They have also won this competition twice before, so they could be in the mix if they can hold things together.
Best Bet
ICC T20 World Cup Top Batsman
The IPL continues to blood new and exciting talent, and Abishek Sharma is the next cab off the rank of enigmatic Indian batters.
His record is superb, particularly in the shortest format of the gam,e and he looks to be in the form of his life.
So often in the past, Travis Head has come up clutch for Australia, and he will be desperate to do it again.
The left-hander is such an accomplished player against spin and seam, and he will be key for the Aussies at the top of the order.
There are plenty of players in the English ranks that can take the game away from the opposition, but Phil Salt is perhaps the most dangerous of them.
Hailing from North Wales, Salt’s rise to England’s T20 opener has been stratospheric, and this feels like a big tournament for him.
Best Bet
ICC T20 World Cup Top Bowler
Home conditions should suit perfectly for India and the spin enigma that is Kuldeep Yadav tends to thrive in familiar surrounds.
With a vast array of balls that often leave batters perplexed, Yadav is a high-quality operator, and he will be key to India’s chances over the next month or so.
In an Australian side packed with talent, the metronomic Adam Zampa always gives the bowling attack a mix of control and a wicket-taking threat.
He is another bowler who always tends to extract the most out of the conditions, and he should be the go-to man throughout the tournament for the Baggy Greens.
Wickets are the key currency for T20 bowlers, and Adil Rashid has been topping the charts on that score for over a decade.
The Yorkshireman continues to lead the English attack, and in conditions that should suit his variations, he will be a real handful in this tournament.
