Cricket / 2026 T20 World Cup: India Face US in Campaign Opener, to Face Pakistan on Feb 15; Rohit Named Tournament Ambassador
Key Points
- India to open their campaign against United States at Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai on February 7.
- The high-voltage India vs Pakistan clash scheduled for February 15 in Colombo.
- Rohit Sharma named Tournament Ambassador for ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026.
Bhubaneswar, Nov 25: The much awaited schedule of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup has been announced Tuesday with India kicking off their campaign on the opening day against United States at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai, February 7.
The tournament opener will be played between Pakistan and Netherlands
in Colombo earlier in the day, followed by West Indies-Bangladesh match at
Kolkata before the final fixture of the day will see the encounter between India
and United States. India will face Namibia in Delhi, February 12.
The schedule for ICC Men’s @T20WorldCup 2026 is here! 📅
— ICC (@ICC) November 25, 2025
The matches and groups were unveiled at a gala event in Mumbai led by ICC Chairman @JayShah, and with new tournament ambassador @ImRo45 and Indian team captains @surya_14kumar and Harmanpreet Kaur in attendance.
✍️:… pic.twitter.com/fsjESpJPlE
Colombo will host the much awaited high-voltage contest
between India and Pakistan, February 15. The defending champions will sign off
their group stage campaign against Netherlands in Ahmedabad, February 18.
Also read: Guwahati Test: South Africa Tighten Grip as India Falter in Fourth Innings
In another major development, Rohit Sharma has been named as the Tournament Ambassador for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026. ICC chairman Jay Shah announced the decision on social media.
“It’s my honour to announce that Rohit Sharma is the
tournament ambassador for the upcoming 2026 T20 World Cup in India & Sri
Lanka,” wrote Shah in a post on X with a picture of him and the Hitman holding
the 2024 T20 World Cup trophy.
It’s my honour to announce that @ImRo45 is the tournament ambassador for the upcoming @T20WorldCup in India & Sri Lanka.
There can be no better representative for the event than the winning captain of the 2024 T20 World Cup, and a player who has been in all nine editions so far. pic.twitter.com/muWh3mUflj
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“There can be no better representative for the event than the winning captain of the 2024 T20 World Cup, and a player who has been in all nine editions so far,” the post reads further.
Tournament Venues
The 20-team tournament will be played across eight venues — five in India and three in Sri Lanka. The venues in India include: Arun Jaitley Stadium, Delhi; Eden Gardens, Kolkata; MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai; Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad, and Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai.
Pallekele International Cricket Stadium, Kandy, and two stadiums in Colombo — R.Premadasa Stadium and Sinhalese Sports Club Ground, will host the matches in Sri Lanka.
Tournament Format
- Following the same format as the previous edition, the tourney will start with 20 teams splitting into four groups of five.
- Each group will play a round-robin stage, with the top two teams progressing to the Super 8.
- In Super 8 stage, the qualified teams will be placed into two groups of four based on pre-tournament seedings and compete in another round-robin.
- The leading two teams from each Super 8 group will then move on to the knockout stage.
- The Final will be played on March 8 at Ahmedabad or Colombo (if Pakistan qualify for the summit clash).
Group Stage
- Group A: India, Namibia, Netherlands, Pakistan, United States
- Group B: Australia, Ireland, Oman, Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe
- Group C: Bangladesh, England, Nepal, Italy, West Indies
- Group D: Afghanistan, Canada, New Zealand, South Africa, UAE
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