New surprise in the 2026 World Cup: Italy in the T20 World Cup for the first time!

The 2026 T20 World Cup will be jointly hosted by India and Sri Lanka next year. The cricket world is expecting the matches to be held between February 7 and March 8.

The final of this 20-team tournament will be held in Ahmedabad or Colombo. If Pakistan reaches the final, it will be in Colombo, otherwise in Ahmedabad. India and Pakistan are not playing each other's countries due to political tensions.

So far, 15 teams have been confirmed - India, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, Australia, Bangladesh, England, South Africa, USA, West Indies, New Zealand, Pakistan, Ireland, Canada, Netherlands and Italy. Italy is playing in the World Cup for the first time. The remaining 5 teams will come from the qualifiers.

The format of the 2026 World Cup will be the same as in 2024. The 20 teams will be divided into four groups, the top two teams in each group will advance to the Super Eights. The top two teams in each group of the Super Eights will play in the semi-finals.

India will host a bigger cricket tournament in the first four months. The women's IPL could be held between January-February, followed by the T20 World Cup, and the men's IPL is likely to be held from March 15 to May 31.