The ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 is all set to get underway on February 7, with the final to be held at the Narendra Modi Stadium on March 8, ESPNCricinfo reported.
The showpiece tournament will be co-hosted by India and Sri Lanka and will feature as many as 20 teams.
The games will be played in at least five venues in India and two in Sri Lanka. The final will be in Ahmedabad or Colombo, depending on whether Pakistan team qualifies for the title clash.
During the buildup to the ICC Champions Trophy earlier this year, a policy was adopted by both the BCCI and PCB, as per which, India and Pakistan will not travel across the border to participate in ICC events for the next three years.
Pakistan hosted the Champions Trophy 2025, but India played all of their matches in Dubai as part of the hybrid model and won the mega event.
As a result, Pakistan will play all of their Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 in Sri Lanka. Even the Women’s ODI World Cup, which would begin later this month, is being played across India and Sri Lanka.
According to the report, while the ICC is still finalising the schedule for next year’s T20 World Cup, the apex body has zeroed in on the window and has informed the participating teams.
The format will be identical to last year’s T20 World Cup in the West Indies and USA, where the 20 sides were split into four groups of five each, with the top two from each group qualifying for the Super 8 stage.
The top eight teams would again be divided into two groups of four. The top two from each Super 8 group would then advance to the semifinals.
India are the reigning champions, having defeated South Africa in the final at Barbados. The 2024 edition had 55 matches and the number of fixtures are likely to be the same next year.
Currently, 15 teams have been confirmed for the 2026 edition, including India, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, Australia, Bangladesh, England, South Africa, USA, West Indies, New Zealand, Pakistan, Ireland, Canada, Netherlands and Italy.
Of the remaining five sides, two will come from the Africa regional qualifier and three from the Asia and East Asia Pacific qualifiers.
(With ESPNCricinfo Inputs)
