The ICC Men’s T20 World Cup gets underway in India and Sri Lanka from tomorrow (7th February), with a trio of Outlaws representatives set to take part.
England’s Ben Duckett and Josh Tongue, and 2026 overseas signing George Linde, of South Africa, are set to bring a flavour of Trent Bridge for the month-long competition.
In all, there will be 55 matches across five stadiums in the two countries, with 20 sides bidding to be crowned champions.
Read on for a group-by-group preview of the tenth iteration of this tournament.
Group A
Contains: India, Namibia, Netherlands, Pakistan, United States
Holders India are the clear frontrunners to defend their title on home soil, and with a star-studded line-up that features the likes of destructive opener Abhishek Sharma and bowling supremo Jasprit Bumrah, plus 2025 Notts overseas Ishan Kishan, few would bet against them doing so.
Their neighbours and rivals Pakistan join them in Group A, and they bring with them Babar Azam, who despite a quiet Big Bash, remains a frightening prospect. The Men in Green failed to reach the knockout stages in 2024 but will hope for an improvement in familiar conditions.
Fresh from hosting the competition last time out, the United States are the rising force in global cricket and will be keen to prove they can continue that in their second consecutive tournament, with captain Monank Patel worth watching out for.
Namibia are in the opposite position, and are preparing to host a global event as next year’s 50-over World Cup comes to Windhoek. Determined to make a name for themselves ahead of that, the African side will look to left-arm quick Ruben Trumpelmann for big wickets.
The group is rounded out by the Netherlands, who have claimed some impressive scalps of full member nations in years gone by, and include several key players who could help them pick up some more this time around, including opening batter Max O’Dowd and seamer Bas de Leede.
Group B
Contains: Australia, Ireland, Oman, Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe
Despite their perception as all-conquering, Australia have lifted this World Cup trophy just once, though they do again bring some global stars to the party. Travis Head’s firepower will be crucial in the batting department, while Adam Zampa should have a big part to play given the conditions.
Joint-hosts Sri Lanka suffered an ignominious warm-up, being whitewashed 3-0 by England in their most recent series, but they will still expect to compete on home soil. All-rounder Wanindu Hasaranga will be important, as will the experience of batter Kusal Mendis.
A good news story for Outlaws followers sees Brendan Taylor return to the Zimbabwe squad just after his 40th birthday, while youngster Brian Bennett, who hit a century at Trent Bridge last year will also be important if the Chevrons are to make an impression after missing the 2024 edition.
Perennial appearance-makers Ireland and up-and-comers Oman are the associate nations placed in Group B, with the former always a dangerous proposition, as many full members have found out in the past. Opener and captain Paul Stirling, with bags of experience, is destructive.
For the latter, their bowling will be the department asked to shoulder much of the burden if they are to be successful, though the Middle Eastern nation are not lacking in experience, bringing Aamir Khaleem and Mohammad Nadeem with them, both of whom are older than 40.
Group C
Contains: England, Italy, Nepal, Scotland, West Indies
England are among the favourites for the tournament, and they will look to a fearsome batting unit led by captain Harry Brook and featuring Duckett, alongside a fiery pace battery including Tongue and Jofra Archer, plus the guile of Adil Rashid, to maintain their status as serious contenders.
Meanwhile, the West Indies are always a force in the shortest format, even as their fortunes have become more lean in recent years, and former Trent Rockets spinner Akeal Hosein, renowned for his exploits in the powerplay, will ask all the right questions.
Scotland, who include Trent Bridge strength and conditioning lead Zac Bess in their backroom staff, replaced Bangladesh after off-field issues, but will hope their late inclusion does not derail their chances of a good tournament. Spinner Mark Watt will be important.
Of the remaining associate nations, it has been the story of debutants Italy in the build-up that has caught the eye, with Wayne Madsen leading a squad assembled from the diaspora that will be determined to cause some upsets.
Nepal round out the contenders, with former Australia international Stuart Law bringing his experience as coach and spinner Sandeep Lamichhane the biggest name, and they will hope their status as the only Asian side in this group will be of use.
Group D
Contains: Afghanistan, Canada, New Zealand, South Africa, United Arab Emirates
Afghanistan, with superstar spinner Rashid Khan as captain and Mujeeb ur Rahman backing him up, will fancy their chances in subcontinental conditions after reaching the semi-finals in 2024.
Incoming Outlaw Linde could have a similar effect for South Africa, though it feels more likely that the fortunes of their power-packed batting lineup, with the likes of David Miller and Dewald Brevis, will be more influential in deciding their fate.
New Zealand, who fell afoul of a similarly tricky group two years ago, will be looking to improve on their fortunes, and will look to spin duo Mitchell Santner, who is set to appear for Trent Rockets this summer, and Ish Sodhi, another former Notts overseas, to be crucial in doing so.
The two associate nations who join them are Canada and United Arab Emirates, with the latter naturally likely to find more enjoyment in the dry subcontinental conditions, though batter Muhammad Waseem will also be relied upon to score big.
The North American outfit, meanwhile, will hope to continue the form that saw them win their regional qualifier with a 100% record, with new captain and all-rounder Dilpreet Bajwa one to watch if they are to surprise a few.
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