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The 10th edition of the men’s ICC T20 World Cup 2026 commenced on February 7, Saturday. Day 1 of the tournament saw Pakistan, West Indies, and India register victories, while New Zealand beat Afghanistan in the morning match on Sunday.

The tournament began with plenty of drama as Bangladesh were replaced by Scotland for deciding not to fly to India for their scheduled matches. That was followed by the declaration by the Pakistan government that their team will boycott the IND vs PAK match.

The 2026 T20 World Cup follows the same format as the previous edition in 2024, with the 20 participating teams bracketed into four groups of five teams each.

The top two teams from each group will progress to the next stage, which is the Super 8. In the Super 8 round, two groups will be formed of four teams each, and the top two teams from each group will advance to the semi-finals.

Let us predict the eight teams – two from each group – that are more likely to reach the Super 8 round.

ICC T20 World Cup: Predicting Eight Teams That Could Qualify For Super 8 Stage From Four Groups

Group A – India, Pakistan, Namibia, Netherlands, USA

India are the clear favorites to win this tournament. Pakistan beat the Netherlands by a whisker and would forfeit two points if they proceed with the threatened boycott against India.

In that case, they would likely be put in a position where the threat of a group stage exit would loom over them if they go down to either USA or Namibia. USA performed impressively against India and had beaten Pakistan in the 2024 T20 World Cup. Yet, right now, we back Pakistan to overcome the USA challenge and join India in the Super 8 from this group.

Predicted Super 8 teams – India, Pakistan

Group B – Oman, Ireland, Zimbabwe, Sri Lanka, Australia

Two former T20 world champions, Australia and Sri Lanka, are firm favorites to advance to the Super 8 stage from this group.

Ireland and Zimbabwe would need individual heroics as well as solid collective efforts to topple even Sri Lanka, who are playing at home, from the top two spots in this group. However, given the volatile nature of the T20 format, an upset can’t always be counted out.

Predicted Super 8 teams – Australia, Sri Lanka

Group C – West Indies, Nepal, England, Italy, Scotland

Having called up at the last moment, Scotland clearly looked under prepared during their loss to the West Indies, while Italy are playing their maiden men’s T20 World Cup. Nepal have some experience of this competition.

Neither of these three teams are expected to take points away from England and West Indies, both two-time former men’s T20 champions.

Predicted Super 8 teams – England, West Indies

Group D – New Zealand, South Africa, UAE, Afghanistan, Canada

Group D is, without a doubt, the group of death in the group stage of the ICC T20 World Cup, with New Zealand, South Africa, and Afghanistan all strong contenders to finish in the top two.

New Zealand have beaten Afghanistan to kick off their campaign on a positive note, banishing the scars of the group-stage exit that the Afghans handed to them two years ago. The Kiwis are the likeliest team to progress to the Super 8 from this group.

Afghanistan created fond memories during their run to the semis in the previous edition, where they lost to South Africa in the semi-final. The South Africa vs Afghanistan group stage match can potentially become an effective knockout.

Predicted Super 8 teams – New Zealand, Afghanistan

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