The ICC T20 World Cup 2021 will be played in two rounds namely Round 1 and the Super 12s. There will be two T20 World Cup 2021 groups in Round 1 (Group A and Group B) with four teams each. The top-2 teams in the respective groups will qualify for the Super 12 stage of the ICC T20 World Cup 2021. ICC T20 World Cup 2021 is all set to kick off on October 17. The mega tournament will take centre stage after an interval of five years. Unfortunately, the 2020 edition had to be abandoned and even the 2021 T20 World Cup has been shifted to the UAE. All the T20 World Cup 2021 teams have gradually settled in the Middle East to begin their preparations for the ICC event.
Even the Super 12 is divided to form two ICC T20 World Cup 2021 groups (Group 1 and Group 2). The eight top-ranked teams in the ICC T20 rankings along with the four qualified teams will contest within their groups. The top two teams from each group will then find a place in the ICC T20 World Cup 2021 Semi-Final.
Each of the two groups in Super 12 is expected to witness some thriller encounters. The likes of Australia, England, and South Africa will battle hard in group 1 while the arch-rivals India and Pakistan, along with New Zealand, will face some tough competition in the second group on the upcoming T20 World Cup in the UAE. West Indies are yet again being touted as the dark horse among all the ICC T20 World Cup 2021 teams.
We take a detailed look at all the participating teams along with ICC T20 World Cup 2021 groups:
Contents
Round 1 – Group A (SL, IRE, NED, NAM)
Sri Lanka
The Island nation has had some substandard performances in the last couple of years. Their inability to qualify among the top-8 ranked T20 teams is an indication of their poor run of form. However, in Round 1, Sri Lanka will be favorites to top their group and qualify for the Super 12s. A young captain in Dasun Shanaka will spearhead the team along with some senior pros including the likes of Kusal Perera, Dinesh Chandimal, Dananjaya De Silva. A largely young SL squad will have the onus to revive their lost respect with a strong show in the ICC T20 World Cup 2021.
SL Squad: Minod Bhanuka, Bhanuka Rajpaksha, Charith Asalanka, Dinesh Chandimal, Dasun Shanaka, Dananjaya De Silva, Wanidru Hasaranga, Charith Karunaratne, Dushmantha Chameera, Nuwan Pradeep, Praveen Jayawhichkrama, Allen Bandara, Lakshan Sandan, Ramesh Mendis, Kamlandu Mendis, Pathum Nissanka, Mahesh Theeksana, Lahiru Madushanaka, and Kusal Perera.
Ireland
Irish cricket has evolved over the years. Ireland has been placed in Group A in the T20 world cup 2021 in Round-1. The likes of Kevin O'Brien, Neil Rock, and the veteran Paul Stirling will ensure to take the team as fast as possible in the mega event. Moreover, Mark Adair, Curtis Campher, and Josh Little have been selected to feature in the national cricket team.
IRE Squad: Andrew Balbirnie (c), Mark Adair, Curtis Campher, Gareth Delany, George Dockrell, Josh Little, Andrew McBrine, Kevin O’Brien, Neil Rock, Simi Singh, Paul Stirling, Harry Tector, Lorcan Tucker, Ben White, Craig Young.
Netherlands
The Netherlands cricket team announced their squad for the T20 World cup 2021. They are placed in group A of Round-1. They will be competing with a strong set of teams. The onus will be on the senior players to guide the team and ensure they come up trumps in the first few games of the tournament.
NED Squad: Pieter Seelaar, Colin Ackermann, Philippe Boissevain,Ben Cooper,Bas de Leede, Scott, Edwards, Brandon Glover, Fred klaassen, Stephan Myburgh,Max O Dowd, Ryan Ten Doeschate,Logan van Beek, Timm van der Gugten, Roelof van der Merwe, Paul van Meekeren
Namibia
Namibian cricket might not be able to qualify for the T20 World Cup 2021 Super 12s but they will surely look to make an impact in the overall scheme of things. Gerhard Erasmus has been appointed as the captain for the T20 WC. Moreover, Stephen Baard, Karl Birkenstock, Michau du Preez have found their names in the squad. It will be exciting to watch out whether Namibia will shine out other teams or not in the ICC T20 World Cup 2021.
NAM Squad: Gerhard Erasmus (c), Stephen Baard, Karl Birkenstock. Michau du Preez, Jan Frylinck, Zane Green, Nicol Lofie-Eaton, Bernard Scholtz, Ben Shikongo, JJ Smit, Ruben Trumpelmann, Michael van Lingen, David Wiese, Craig Williams, Picky Ya France
Group B (BAN, SCO, PNG, OMA)
Bangladesh
The Bangla Tigers have been one of the most improved teams in the recent past across all formats. The ‘Men in Green' have proved their mettle times and again on the cricket turf. Skipper Mahmudullah will lead the team with all his experience expected to come good for his team in the competition. Moreover, the regulars in the form of Shakib-Al Hasan, Mushfiqur Rahim, Soumya Sarkar, Liton Kumar Das form the core of the side. Their performance will play a pivotal role in the team's overall performance in the matches ahead.
BAN Squad: Mahmudullah (c), Shakib Al Hasan, Mushfiqur Rahim, Soumya Sarkar, Liton Kumar Das, Afif Hossain, Mohammad Naim, Nurul Hasan Sohan, Shamim Hossain, Mustafizur Rahman, Taskin Ahmed, Mohammad Saifuddin, Shoriful Islam, Mahedi Hasan, Nasum Ahmed
Scotland
Scotland is also set to make its presence count in the ICC T20 World Cup 2021. The European nation has put a lot of effort and build a team that can pitch its candidature into the Super 12s. Kyle Coetzer has been nominated as the skipper for the Scottish team. Players like Richard Berrington, Dylan Budge, Matthew Cross (wk), Josh Davey, Alasdair Evans have been roped into the squad as they are the match winners of the team. Their contributions cannot be ignored in the final outcome of the match.
SCO Squad: Kyle Coetzer (c), Richard Berrington (VC), Dylan Budge, Matthew Cross (wk), Josh Davey, Alasdair Evans, Chris Greaves, Oli Hairs, Michael Leask, Calum Macleod, George Munsey, Safyaan Sharif, Chris Sole, Hamza Tahir, Craig Wallace (wk), Mark Watt, Brad Wheal
Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea will look to establish itself as a national cricket team on a global platform in the upcoming cricketing carnival. The amateurs like Charles Amini, Hiri Hiri and Norman Vanua, and Tony Ura will play for their national team. Their efforts will be backed up by the skipper Assad Vala.
PNG Squad: Assad Vala (c), Charles Amini, Hiri Hiri, Norman Vanua, Tony Ura, J. Gardner, J. Kila, Vagi Morea, Chad Soper, Lega Siaka, Damien Ravu, Nosaina Pokana, Gaudi Toka, Kiplin Doriga (wk), Sese Bau, Simon Atai
Oman
Oman will be the host nation of the ICC T20 World Cup 2021. Therefore, all eyes will be on them to come good on their home turf. Although they will be clubbed under the title of the underdog, they still have a long way to establish themselves on the world platform. Zeeshan Maqsood will be the skipper of the team. He will look forward to being impactful and draw praise for the collective effort shown by the Oman cricket team.
OMA Squad: Zeeshan Maqsood (C), Aqib Ilyas (VC), Jatinder Singh, Khawar Ali, Mohammad Nadeem, Ayaan Khan, Suraj Kumar, Sandeep Goud, Nester Dhamba, Kaleemullah, Bilal Khan, Naseem Khushi, Sufyan Mehmood, Fayyaz Butt, Khurram Khan
Super 12s – Group 1
England
The English cricket team is being touted as one of the favorites to claim their second T20 WC after 2010. Led by Eoin Morgan, England failed to cross the final hurdle in 2016 and will be willing to go a step further in 2021. The absence of Ben Stokes and Jofra Archer might dent their chances and expose their death bowling woes. However, with a powerful batting line-up, England will back themselves to reach the final-4. Undoubtedly, England will be one of the strongest teams in the ICC T20 World Cup 2021.
ENG Squad: Eoin Morgan, Mark Wood, Adil Rashid, Sam Billings, Liam Livingstone, Chris Woakes, Moeen Ali, Jason Roy, Jonny Bairstow, David Willey, Jos Buttler, Tymal Mills, Tom Curran, Dawid Malan, Chris Jordan.
Australia
Australia hasn't witnessed enough success as they would have liked in T20I cricket. The T20 WC 2021 will provide them an opportunity to attain glory under the captaincy of Aaron Finch. The Australia squad for the ICC T20 World Cup 2021 boasts of some really exciting and specialists in this format. Along with the experience of Steve Smith, David Warner, and Pat Cummins, the exuberance of Glenn Maxwell, Adam Zampa might help Australia go all the way in this tournament.
AUS Squad: Aaron Finch (c), Ashton Agar, Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, Josh Inglis, Mitchell Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Kane Richardson, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Marcus Stoinis, Mitchell Swepson, Matthew Wade, David Warner, Adam Zampa.
South Africa
The Men from the Rainbow nation haven't been as consistent at the ICC events in the last few years. South Africa has faced tough times in even making the Semi-Finals for most ICC events since 2015. Under the leadership of Temba Bavuma, the Proteas will hope to turn their fortunes in the forthcoming edition. The South Africa T20 World Cup squad features some eminent names. The likes of Quinton de Kock, Kagiso Rabada, David Miller, will be some of the key players for SA.
SA Squad: Aiden Markram, David Miller, Wiaan Mulder, Lungi Ngidi, Anrich Nortje, Dwaine Pretorius, Kagiso Radaba, Keshav Maharaj, Tabraiz Shamsi, Rassie van der Dussen, Temba Bavuma (C), Quinton de Kock (WK), Bjorn Fortuin, Reeza Hendricks, Heinrich Klaasen.
West Indies
The defending T20 World Cup champions, West Indies will yet again be in the race to defend their title. Under the experienced Keiron Pollard, the ‘Men in Maroon' have forged a team that can take down any opposition on a given day. The explosive likes of Andre Russell, Chris Gayle, coupled with the exuberance of Nicolas Pooran and Shimron Hetmyer, augurs well to find the right balance. The Caribbean team will definitely be one of the most dangerous T20 World Cup 2021 teams in the tournament.
WI Squad: Kieron Pollard (Captain), Nicholas Pooran (Vice-Captain), Fabian Allen, Dwayne Bravo, Roston Chase, Andre Fletcher, Chris Gayle, Shimron Hetmyer, Evin Lewis, Obed McCoy, Lendl Simmons, Ravi Rampaul, Andre Russell, Oshane Thomas, Hayden Walsh jr
Group 2
India
The Indian cricket team will step onto the field as the prime contenders to win the T20 World Cup 2021. Led by Virat Kohli, the ‘Men in Blue' have all the bases covered. With a settled unit, Team India has one of the strongest playing XI among all teams in the competition. Kohli and co. have picked as many as four spinners in the squad. The form of Ravindra Jadeja could have a major impact on India's campaign.
IND Squad: Virat Kohli (C), Rohit Sharma (VC), KL Rahul, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant (wk), Ishan Kishan (wk), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Rahul Chahar, Ravichandran Ashwin, Shardul Thakur, Varun Chakravarthy, Jasprit Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohd Shami
Pakistan
Men in Green will reach the shores of UAE with a formidable squad, Under the leadership of Babar Azam, Pakistan have a good balance of youth and experience in their squad. The last-minute additions of Shoaib Malik, Sarfaraz Ahmed, and Fakahar Zaman will bolster their side for the upcoming tour. Along with Babar, a lot will rest upon the shoulders of M Rizwan, and Shadab Khan to produce match-winning performances. If the Babar-led side aims to finish the T20 World Cup 2021 groups at a high, they'll expect their senior players to raise their game in some tough games.
PAK Squad: Babar Azam (C), Shadab Khan (vice-captain), Asif Ali, Fakhar Zaman, Haider Ali, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Imad Wasim, Mohammad Hafeez, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan (WK), Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Sarfaraz Ahmed (WK), Shaheen Shah Afridi and Shoaib Malik
New Zealand
BlackCaps look driven as the team management announced the squad for the T20 World Cup 2021. Kane Williamson, who has proven his leadership skills in the last few ICC events, will captain the side. Kiwis have relied a lot on experience with the inclusion of Todd Astle, Tim Southee, and Trent Boult. Guptill and Conway will be their key bet in the batting department while Trent Boult is expected to lead the bowling attack.
NZ Squad: Kane Williamson (c), Todd Astle, Trent Boult, Mark Chapman, Devon Conway, Lockie Ferguson, Martin Guptill, Kyle Jamieson, Daryl Mitchell, Jimmy Neesham, Glenn Phillips, Mitchell Santner, Tim Seifert, Ish Sodhi, Tim Southee
Afghanistan
Key players like Rashid Khan, Mohammad Nabi, Najibullah Zadran, Hashmatullah Shahidi, Mohammad Shahzad, Mujeeb ur Rahman will be the prominent players as far as Afghanistan's squad is concerned. A lot will depend on the form of Rashid Khan and skipper Mohammad Nabi. Afghanistan has all the potential to spoil the party for most T20 World Cup 2021 teams in the tournament this year.
AFG Squad: Mohammad Nabi (C), Rashid Khan, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Hazratullah Zazai, Usman Ghani, Asghar Afghan, Najibullah Zadran, Hashmatullah Shahidi, Mohammad Shahzad, Mujeeb ur Rahman, Karim Janat, Gulbadin Naib, Naveen ul Haq, Hamid Hassan, Sharafuddin Ashraf, Dawlat Zadran, Shapoor Zadran, Qais Ahmad
