England begin their 2026 Men’s T20 World Cup campaign against Nepal in Mumbai on Sunday, February 8 with the fixtures announced for the 10th edition of the tournament to be held in India and Sri Lanka.
England, champions in 2010 and 2022 and beaten in the semi-finals by India at the previous edition in the Caribbean and USA in 2024, have also been placed with debutants Italy, two-time West Indies winners and Bangladesh in Group C.
They will play the West Indies in Mumbai (February 11) before games against Bangladesh (February 14) and Italy (February 16) in Kolkata.
The 20-team tournament, which runs from February 7 to March 8, will mark Harry Brooks’ first as England captain at a global event, with the batsman taking over from Jos Buttler following the disastrous 50-over Champions Trophy campaign earlier this year on the subcontinent, where the team lost all three of their group matches.
India grouped with Pakistan; sides to play each other in Colombo
Defending champions India – who defeated South Africa in the 2024 final to claim their second title – are in the same group as 2009 winners Pakistan when the sides meet in Colombo on 15 February.
Pakistan and India currently only play each other in global events and Asia Cups due to political tensions, with all games taking place on neutral territory.
India and Pakistan are joined in Group A by the USA, Namibia and the Netherlands, with Pakistan playing the Netherlands in the tournament opener in Colombo on Saturday, February 7.
Group B includes 2021 winners Australia, co-hosts and 2014 winners Sri Lanka, Ireland, Oman and Zimbabwe, while Group D features 2024 runners-up South Africa, New Zealand, Canada, Afghanistan and the United Arab Emirates.
India captain Suryakumar Yadav and Pakistani counterpart Salman Agha did not shake hands during the matches at the recent Asia Cup
How does the T20 World Cup work?
The teams meet the others in their pool once each in the group stage, with the top two progressing to the Super 8 stage.
The Super 8s then feature two pools of four, with the top two after another round robin advancing to the semi-finals.
The first semi-final (March 4) will be played in Colombo if Pakistan reach the knockouts or Kolkata if not, with the second (March 5) in Mumbai.
The final (March 8) will then be held at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, unless Pakistan qualify, in which case the showpiece game will take place in Colombo.
Virat Kohli helped India win the 2024 T20 World Cup before promptly retiring from the format
2026 Men’s T20 World Cup – Full Match
Group phase
Saturday, February 7
- Pakistan vs Netherlands (Colombo) – Group A
- India vs USA (Mumbai) – Group A
- West Indies vs Bangladesh (Kolkata) – Group C
Sunday, February 8
- Sri Lanka vs Ireland (Colombo) – Group B
- England vs Nepal (Mumbai) – Group C
- New Zealand vs Afghanistan (Chennai) – Group D
Monday, February 9
- Zimbabwe vs Oman (Colombo) – Group B
- Bangladesh vs Italy (Kolkata) – Group C
- South Africa vs Canada (Ahmedabad) – Group D
Tuesday, February 10
- Pakistan vs USA (Colombo) – Group A
- Netherlands vs Namibia (Delhi)
- New Zealand vs UAE (Chennai) – Group D
Wednesday 11 February
- Australia vs Ireland (Colombo) – Group B
- England vs West Indies (Mumbai) – Group C
- South Africa vs Afghanistan (Ahmedabad) – Group D
Thursday, February 12
- India vs Namibia (Delhi) – Group A
- Sri Lanka vs Oman (Kandy) – Group B
- Nepal vs Italy (Mumbai) – Group C
Friday, February 13
- USA vs Netherlands (Chennai) – Group A
- Australia vs Zimbabwe (Colombo) – Group B
- Canada vs UAE (Delhi) – Group D
Saturday, February 14
- Ireland vs Oman (Colombo) – Group B
- England vs Bangladesh (Kolkata) – Group C
- New Zealand vs South Africa (Ahmedabad) – Group D
Sunday, February 15
- India vs Pakistan (Colombo) – Group A
- USA vs Namibia (Chennai) – Group A
- West Indies vs Nepal (Mumbai) – Group C
Monday, February 16
- Australia vs Sri Lanka (Kandy) – Group B
- England vs Italy (Kolkata) – Group C
- Afghanistan vs UAE (Delhi) – Group D
Tuesday 17 February
- Ireland vs Zimbabwe (Kandy) – Group B
- Bangladesh vs Nepal (Mumbai) – Group C
- New Zealand vs Canada (Chennai) – Group D
Wednesday 18 February
- Pakistan vs Namibia (Colombo) – Group A
- India vs Netherlands (Ahmedabad) – Group A
- South Africa vs UAE (Delhi) – Group D
Thursday 19 February
- Sri Lanka vs Zimbabwe (Colombo) – Group B
- West Indies vs Italy (Kolkata) – Group C
- Afghanistan vs Canada (Chennai) – Group D
Friday, February 20
- Australia vs Oman (Kandy) – Group B
Super 8s
Saturday 21 February
Sunday, February 22
- Y1 vs Y4 (Kandy)
- X1 vs X4 (Ahmedabad)
Monday, February 23
Tuesday, February 24
Wednesday 25 February
Thursday, February 26
- X3 vs X4 (Ahmedabad)
- X1 vs X2 (Chennai)
Friday, February 27
Saturday 28 February
Sunday, March 1
- X2 vs X4 (Delhi)
- X1 vs X3 (Kolkata)
Knockout rounds
Wednesday 4 March
- Semi Final 1 (Kolkata or Colombo)
Thursday 5 March
Sunday 8 March:
- Final (Ahmedabad or Colombo)
How teams qualified for the T20 World Cup
- India (qualified as hosts)
- Sri Lanka (qualified as hosts)
- England (qualified on performance in last T20 World Cup)
- Afghanistan (qualified on performance in last T20 World Cup)
- Australia (qualified on performance in last T20 World Cup)
- Bangladesh (qualified on performance in last T20 World Cup)
- South Africa (qualified on performance in last T20 World Cup)
- USA (qualified on performance in last T20 World Cup)
- West Indies (qualified on performance in last T20 World Cup)
- Ireland (qualified via T20I rankings)
- New Zealand (qualified via T20I rankings)
- Pakistan (qualified via T20I rankings)
- Italy* (came through European qualification)
- The Netherlands (came through European qualification)
- Canada (came through the Americas Qualifier)
- Namibia (came through the Africa qualifier)
- Zimbabwe (came through the Africa qualifier)
- Nepal (came through the Asia-Pacific Regional Final)
- Oman (came through the Asia-Pacific Regional Final)
- United Arab Emirates (came through the Asia-Pacific Regional Final)
*Italy are the only debutants in this edition of the T20 World Cup