Women's T20 World Cup 2026

Teams — Who's Playing?

Format — How It Works

The 12-team structure groups sides into two pools of six, with each team playing five group-stage matches. The top three from each group advance to the Super 6s — a transitional stage where points against other qualifiers are carried forward, rewarding teams who performed consistently in the group stage. The top two from Super 6s qualify for the semi-finals, and the final takes place at Lord's.

India Women's Squad — Who's Going?

Based on the form guide emerging from WPL 2026 and the T20I series leading into June, here is how we expect India's XI to shape up for WT20 World Cup 2026:

• Top order: Smriti Mandhana (captain), Shafali Verma, Yastika Bhatia (wk)
• Middle order: Harmanpreet Kaur, Jemimah Rodrigues, Deepti Sharma
• All-rounders: Pooja Vastrakar, Radha Yadav, Minnu Mani
• Bowlers: Renuka Singh, Titas Sadhu, Rashi Solanki

Smriti Mandhana assumed the captaincy following Harmanpreet Kaur's decision to focus on her batting after WPL 2026 — a transition that, by all accounts, has sharpened both players. The most contested selection question heading into the tournament is the second wicket-keeper spot, with Richa Ghosh and Yastika Bhatia both in contention. Bhatia's left-handedness adds balance to the batting order, which may give her the edge.

Venues — What to Expect

• Lord's (Final): The smallest boundary in England — expect high-scoring matches. Spinners may struggle here.
• Edgbaston: Balanced pitch, good bounce. Fast bowlers will extract movement under lights.
• Headingley: Historically the fastest pitch in England. Pacers dominate here.
• Trent Bridge: Batting-friendly, smaller boundaries, high-scoring chases likely.

Favourites

Australiaremain the benchmark — six WPL titles in nine editions tells its own story. What makes them formidable in 2026 is the depth of their attack. Megan Schutt leads a pace unit that can extract movement on any surface, while Ashleigh Gardner's off-spin and variations give them spin variety that most teams cannot match. In our view, they are the team to beat.

Englandas hosts have a genuine claim. Playing at Lord's for the final is a significant advantage — the ground record, the home crowd, and the familiarity of conditions all favour the hosts. Nat Sciver-Brunt, in particular, is a player we expect to dominate this tournament: her all-round skill set is unmatched in women's cricket right now.

India will be competitive if their batting fires. The top six — Mandhana, Shafali, Yastika, Harmanpreet, Jemimah, Deepti — is as strong as any in the tournament on paper. The concern is the death bowling. India lost three matches in WPL 2026 when defending totals under 180, and that vulnerability at the back end of an innings is the gap between this India side and the top two.