The International Cricket Council on Tuesday announced the schedule for the upcoming T20 World Cup 2026. The tournament will begin on February 7, while the final will be played on March 8. India have been placed in a group featuring Pakistan, USA, Namibia and the Netherlands. India will face arch-rival Pakistan on February 15 in Colombo, and it will be the first meeting between these two after the three clashes in the Asia Cup.
The defending champions will open their campaign against the USA on February 7 in Mumbai, followed by their clash against Namibia on February 12 in Delhi. The high-octane India-Pakistan clash will take place on February 15 in Colombo before the Suryakumar Yadav-led team complete their league stage against the Netherlands on February 18 in Ahmedabad.
As per the groups revealed by the ICC, India, Pakistan, Namibia, the USA and the Netherlands are in the same group. Bangladesh, Italy, England, Nepal and the West Indies are in the same group. Australia, Ireland, Oman, Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe form the other group. The final group features Afghanistan, Canada, New Zealand, South Africa and the UAE.
The tournament will take place at five venues in India - the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi, the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, the Eden Gardens in Kolkata, the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai and the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. Three venues in Sri Lanka will host the global event, with the R Premadasa Stadium and the Sinhalese Sports Club in Colombo and the Palleke Stadium in Kandy hosting the tournament.
The World Cup will feature 20 teams competing for the coveted trophy, divided into four groups of five teams each. The top two teams from each group will qualify for the Super Eight, followed by the semifinals and the final.
As per the schedule, the World Cup will begin on February 7 with the final on March 8.
If India make it to the Super Eight from the group stage, their three Super Eight matches will be played in Ahmedabad, Chennai, and Kolkata. If India are into the semifinals, their semi-final will be in Mumbai. Meanwhile, the ICC has shortlisted Colombo or Kolkata as the other semi-final venue if Sri Lanka and Pakistan reach the last four. The final will be played in Ahmedabad if Pakistan are not there, or else it is likely to be played in Colombo.
Here's group-wise schedule of T20 World Cup 2026
Group A
| Date | Fixture | Venue | Time |
| Feb 7 | Pakistan vs Netherlands | Colombo | 11 AM |
| Feb 7 | India vs USA | Mumbai | 7 PM |
| Feb 10 | Netherlands vs Namibia | Delhi | 11 AM |
| Feb 10 | Pakistan vs USA | Colombo | 7 PM |
| Feb 12 | India vs Namibia | Delhi | 7 PM |
| Feb 13 | USA vs Netherlands | Chennai | 7 PM |
| Feb 15 | USA vs Namibia | Chennai | 3 PM |
| Feb 15 | India vs Pakistan | Colombo | 7 PM |
| Feb 18 | Pakistan vs Namibia | Colombo | 3 PM |
| Feb 18 | India vs Netherlands | Ahmedabad | 7 PM |
Group B
| Date | Fixture | Venue | Time |
| Feb 8 | Sri Lanka vs Ireland | Colombo | 7 PM |
| Feb 9 | Zimbabwe vs Oman | Colombo | 3 PM |
| Feb 11 | Australia vs Ireland | Colombo | 3 PM |
| Feb 12 | Sri Lanka vs Oman | Kandy | 11 AM |
| Feb 13 | Australia vs Zimbabwe | Colombo | 11 AM |
| Feb 14 | Ireland vs Oman | Colombo | 11 AM |
| Feb 16 | Australia vs Sri Lanka | Kandy | 7 PM |
| Feb 17 | Ireland vs Zimbabwe | Kandy | 3 PM |
| Feb 19 | Sri Lanka vs Zimbabwe | Colombo | 3 PM |
| Feb 20 | Australia vs Oman | Kandy | 7 PM |
Group C
| Date | Fixture | Venue | Time |
| Feb 7 | West Indies vs Bangladesh | Kolkata | 3 PM |
| Feb 8 | England vs Nepal | Mumbai | 3 PM |
| Feb 9 | Bangladesh vs Italy | Kolkata | 11 AM |
| Feb 11 | England vs West Indies | Mumbai | 7 PM |
| Feb 12 | Nepal vs Italy | Mumbai | 3 PM |
| Feb 14 | England vs Bangladesh | Kolkata | 3 PM |
| Feb 15 | West Indies vs Nepal | Mumbai | 11 AM |
| Feb 16 | England vs Italy | Kolkata | 3 PM |
| Feb 17 | Bangladesh vs Nepal | Mumbai | 7 PM |
| Feb 19 | West Indies vs Italy | Kolkata | 11 AM |
Group D
| Date | Fixture | Venue | Time |
| Feb 8 | New Zealand vs Afghanistan | Chennai | 11 AM |
| Feb 9 | South Africa vs Canada | Ahmedabad | 7 PM |
| Feb 10 | New Zealand vs UAE | Chennai | 3 PM |
| Feb 11 | South Africa vs Afghanistan | Ahmedabad | 11 AM |
| Feb 13 | Canada vs UAE | Delhi | 3 PM |
| Feb 14 | New Zealand vs South Africa | Ahmedabad | 7 PM |
| Feb 16 | Afghanistan vs UAE | Delhi | 11 AM |
| Feb 17 | New Zealand vs Canada | Chennai | 11 AM |
| Feb 18 | South Africa vs UAE | Delhi | 11 AM |
| Feb 19 | Afghanistan vs Canada | Chennai | 7 PM |
List of teams to have qualified for T20 World Cup 2026
All 20 teams for the World Cup have been confirmed. Apart from the hosts India and Sri Lanka, the top seven teams - Afghanistan, Australia, Bangladesh, England, South Africa, the United States of America and the West Indies - from the T20 World Cup 2024 confirmed their spots for the 2026 tournament.
Meanwhile, New Zealand, Pakistan and Ireland booked their spots on the basis of T20I rankings. Italy and the Netherlands qualified from a tournament in Europe, while Canada booked their place from the Americas Qualifier. Namibia and Zimbabwe booked their spots from the Africa qualifier, while Nepal, Oman and UAE came from the Asia-EP round to make the tournament a 20-team one.