Saturday, February 7 – that’s when cricket takes over our lives again. India and Sri Lanka will host the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Matches together this year. 20 teams, 55 matches, and one massive trophy up for grabs.
Ahmedabad hosts the final on March 8. India gets the privilege of staging the title clash. Home advantage for the tournament finale matters.
Pakistan’s refusal to play India has already created controversy. But the ICC confirmed all other matches will go ahead as planned. Drama off the field won’t stop the action on it.
How the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Format Works
The ICC uses the same structure as the 2024 T20 World Cup. Four groups with five teams each kick things off. Every team faces the other four in their group once.
The top two teams from each group move forward to the Super 8 stage. That’s where things get really competitive in this tournament. Eight teams are split into two groups of four at that point.
Here’s something interesting about the seeding system. If a seeded team crashes out early, the replacement takes their seeding spot. Smart planning keeps the competition balanced throughout.
Group A has India marked as X1, then Namibia, Netherlands, Pakistan as Y3, and USA.
Group B features Australia at X2, Ireland, Oman, Sri Lanka as Y4, and Zimbabwe battling it out.
Group C brings England (Y1), Italy, Nepal, Scotland, and West Indies (X3) together.
Group D consists of Afghanistan, Canada, New Zealand (Y2), South Africa (X4), and UAE competing fiercely.
Match Guarantees and Tournament Structure
Every team plays at least four matches guaranteed by the ICC. Nobody flies home after just one or two games in this Men’s tournament. That’s fair for all participating nations.
| Date | Match | Venue | Time (IST) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 7 | Pakistan vs Netherlands | Colombo | 11:00 AM |
| Feb 7 | West Indies vs Bangladesh | Kolkata | 3:00 PM |
| Feb 7 | India vs USA | Mumbai | 7:00 PM |
| Feb 8 | New Zealand vs Afghanistan | Chennai | 3:00 PM |
| Feb 8 | England vs Nepal | Mumbai | 7:00 PM |
| Feb 8 | Sri Lanka vs Ireland | Colombo | 7:00 PM |
| Feb 9 | Bangladesh vs Italy | Kolkata | 11:00 AM |
| Feb 9 | Zimbabwe vs Oman | Colombo | 3:00 PM |
| Feb 9 | South Africa vs Canada | Ahmedabad | 7:00 PM |
| Feb 10 | Netherlands vs Namibia | Ahmedabad | 11:00 AM |
| Feb 10 | New Zealand vs UAE | Chennai | 3:00 PM |
| Feb 10 | Pakistan vs UAE | Colombo | 7:00 PM |
| Feb 11 | South Africa vs Afghanistan | Ahmedabad | 3:00 PM |
| Feb 11 | Australia vs Ireland | Colombo | 7:00 PM |
| Feb 11 | England vs West Indies | Mumbai | 7:00 PM |
| Feb 12 | Sri Lanka vs Oman | Kandy | 3:00 PM |
| Feb 12 | Nepal vs Italy | Mumbai | 7:00 PM |
| Feb 12 | India vs Namibia | Delhi | 7:00 PM |
| Feb 13 | Australia vs Zimbabwe | Colombo | 3:00 PM |
| Feb 13 | Canada vs Namibia | Colombo | 7:00 PM |
| Feb 13 | USA vs Netherlands | Chennai | 7:00 PM |
| Feb 14 | Ireland vs Oman | Colombo | 11:00 AM |
| Feb 14 | England vs Bangladesh | Kolkata | 3:00 PM |
| Feb 14 | New Zealand vs South Africa | Ahmedabad | 7:00 PM |
| Feb 15 | West Indies vs Nepal | Mumbai | 11:00 AM |
| Feb 15 | USA vs Namibia | Chennai | 3:00 PM |
| Feb 15 | India vs Pakistan | Colombo | 7:00 PM |
| Feb 16 | Afghanistan vs UAE | Delhi | 11:00 AM |
| Feb 16 | England vs Italy | Kolkata | 3:00 PM |
| Feb 16 | Australia vs Sri Lanka | Kandy | 7:00 PM |
| Feb 17 | New Zealand vs Canada | Chennai | 3:00 PM |
| Feb 17 | Ireland vs Zimbabwe | Kandy | 7:00 PM |
| Feb 18 | Bangladesh vs Nepal | Mumbai | 11:00 AM |
| Feb 18 | South Africa vs UAE | Delhi | 3:00 PM |
| Feb 18 | Pakistan vs Namibia | Colombo | 3:00 PM |
| Feb 18 | India vs Netherlands | Ahmedabad | 7:00 PM |
| Feb 19 | Italy vs West Indies | Kolkata | 3:00 PM |
| Feb 19 | Sri Lanka vs Zimbabwe | Colombo | 7:00 PM |
| Feb 20 | Afghanistan vs Canada | Chennai | 3:00 PM |
| Feb 20 | Australia vs Oman | Kandy | 7:00 PM |
| Feb 22 | TBD vs TBD | Kandy | 3:00 PM |
| Feb 23 | TBD vs TBD | Ahmedabad | 7:00 PM |
| Feb 24 | TBD vs TBD | Mumbai | 7:00 PM |
| Feb 25 | TBD vs TBD | Colombo | 7:00 PM |
| Feb 26 | TBD vs TBD | Ahmedabad | 3:00 PM |
| Feb 27 | TBD vs TBD | Chennai | 7:00 PM |
| Feb 28 | TBD vs TBD | Colombo | 3:00 PM |
| Mar 1 | TBD vs TBD | Kolkata | 7:00 PM |
Knockout Time Table:
Teams knocked out after Super 8. 4 semifinalists play matches before their campaign ends. The two finalists battle to decide the T20 World Cup champion.
| Date | Match | Venue | Time (IST) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 4 | Semi Final 1 | Kolkata / Colombo | Time TBC |
| Mar 5 | Semi Final 2 | Mumbai | Time TBC |
| Mar 8 | Final | Ahmedabad / Colombo | Time TBC |
Super 8 groups follow simple progression rules set by the council. The top two from each group advance to the semifinals. Then it’s knockout cricket – lose once and you’re done for the championship.
India Defends Their Title
India comes in as defending champions from the last T20 World Cup. They did something incredible last time – won all nine games without a single loss. Creating history like that doesn’t happen often in ICC tournaments.
That perfect record puts massive pressure on the Men’s team this time. Can they repeat that dominance on home pitches? Fans expect nothing less than another strong showing.
Warm-up matches are already underway across venues. Teams are testing combinations and getting used to conditions. The management arranged these practice games specifically for tournament preparation.
February 7 can’t come soon enough for cricket lovers everywhere. The contest brings together the world’s best players. One month of top-quality Men’s cricket awaits us all.
