New Delhi. After becoming the World Champion in T20, India has not only concluded a tournament but has also laid the foundation of a new adventure in the cricket world. The echo of that historic victory in the final against New Zealand had not yet subsided that the eyes of cricket lovers around the world are now fixed on the 2028 ICC T20 World Cup. This tournament will be played between October 21 and November 19, 2028, jointly hosted by Australia and New Zealand.
This will be the 11th edition of T20 World Cup. After 2022, Australia will host this global event for the second time. Whereas for New Zealand it will be a historic moment as it will organize Men's T20 World Cup matches for the first time. The tournament is in the hands of Dame Therese Walsh, who is currently finalizing the venues and preparations.
Major stadiums and venues
It is expected that some of the most prestigious cricket grounds of both the countries will witness this Mahakumbh.
Australia: Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG), Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG), Adelaide Oval and Optus Stadium in Perth.
New Zealand: Auckland's Eden Park, Wellington's Sky Stadium and Christchurch's Hagley Oval.
20 teams will participate
The ICC has retained the 20-team format introduced in 2024. With the conclusion of the Super-8 stage of the 2026 World Cup, 12 teams have confirmed their places:
Host Country: Australia and New Zealand (being the hosts, have already secured their places).
Based on 2026 performance: India (defending champions), England, South Africa, Pakistan, West Indies, Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe.
Based on ranking: Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Ireland have secured their places based on the ICC T20 rankings as of the cut-off date of March 9, 2026. The fight is still on for the remaining 8 places. Regional qualification tournaments for these will start from mid-2026. Sub-regional qualifiers will be held in regions such as the Americas (proposed in the Cayman Islands) and Europe, giving associate countries a chance to reach the main stage.
Tournament format and challenges
The structure of the T20 World Cup in 2028 will remain the same as in 2026:
Group Stage: 20 teams will be divided into four groups of 5 each.
Super-8: The top teams of each group will advance to the next round.
knock out: The best teams of Super-8 will face each other in the semi-finals and then the finals.
what's at stake?
The Indian team will enter 2028 as the defending champion, aiming to defend its title. At the same time, the New Zealand team will try its best to avenge the defeat in the 2026 final and win the first world title on its soil. Australia will also be eyeing dominance on their home ground.
