ICC T20 World Cup 2021 is going to commence on 23rd October. The Matches will be played at Sharjah, Abu Dhabi & Dubai which will make the tournament mouth-watering irrespective of the heat because the change of conditions can throw a lot of surprises. There are 2 groups made in which 8 teams have been placed with 4 in each group (* 4 more teams will be inducted after the Qualifying Stage gets over). The Groups are listed as follows:
| Group 1 | Group 2 |
| England | India |
| Australia | Pakistan |
| South Africa | New Zealand |
| West Indies | Afghanistan |
- Group 1
Group 1 is evenly poised as there is not only cut-throat competition but every team’s match is on the edge of knife as there are no looseners. Group 1 is as follows:
#England
| Year | Performance |
| 2016 | Runners Up |
| 2014 | Group Stage |
| 2012 | Group Stage |
| 2010 | Champions |
The Last 4 T20 World Cup indicates that England are making good in roads in T20 World Cricket especially in 2010.
- England have got everything to be the Champions as they are ticking each & every box whether it is batting, bowling, fielding & Captaincy as Eoin Morgan may be facing criticism of his batting but his presence in the batting line up is still threatening.
- Their conundrum is facing spin which every team will exploit & for that they should just keep in their heed that they should cut the opponent in half in the power-play overs.
- England have got an umbrella man in the form of Dawid Malan the unorthodox batsman & currently the No.1 T20 Batsman whose presence will boost team chances according to the conditions of UAE.
- The barrier for England is that they have got problems in the pace department regarding the death overs & for that they should use Tymal Mills the cunning left arm fast bowler who can create difficult angles for batters to hit.
- The spin duo of Moeen Ali & Adil Rashid need to bowl in tandem as long as possible because bowling in partnerships perturbs the batters.
#Australia
| Year | Performance |
| 2016 | Group Stage |
| 2014 | Group Stage |
| 2012 | Semi Finalists |
| 2010 | Runners Up |
The Last 4 T20 World Cups have been topsy-turvy as they have shown glimpses of becoming Champions but succumbed to pressure in 2010 T20 World Cup
- Australia have got back all their star players into the mix as the likes of Smith, Warner, Finch, Maxwell, Cummins, Hazlewood & Starc which will possess a sort of fear factor in opponent’s minds.
- Australia should assign someone like Maxwell, Stoinis or Mitchel Marsh to finish the games as Smith, Warner & Finch won’t every-time deliver the knock-out punch.
- Spin Department of Australia is somewhat underrated with Zampa & Agar who need to make sure that they are not increasing the work of the fast bowlers as spinners need to slow down the run rate.
- Australia have developed a very bad habit of falling like a pack of cards which will worsen their campaign & for that they need to play smartly that too pragmatically.
- Skipper Aaron Finch needs to be shrewd as making witty decisions will determine the fate of Australia.
#South Africa
| Year | Performance |
| 2016 | Group Stage |
| 2014 | Semi Finalists |
| 2012 | Group Stage |
| 2010 | Group Stage |
The Last 4 T20 World Cups are conveying a message that South Africa is living up to their chokers tag.
- South Africa have been bolstered not by the absence of Senior Players like Faf & Tahir but by the performance of in form players like Aiden Markram, Quinton de Kock & the newly appointed skipper Temba Bavuma.
- South Africa have now developed a tendency to play like a team as they are not dependent on a single player which is rare.
- Surprisingly this time South Africa have found a new weapon which is spin as they have Shamsi, Keshav & Fortuin which have thwarted batters.
- Temba Bavuma & the Coach Mark Boucher needs to apply the theory of horses for courses as the use of Rabada, Ngidi & Nortje will decide their fate.
- David Miller needs to bat more responsibility as he is the only experienced middle order batter who has seen the highs &lows of South Africa in T20 World Cup.
#West Indies
| Year | Performance |
| 2016 | Winners |
| 2014 | Semi Finalists |
| 2012 | Winners |
| 2010 | Group Stage |
The Last 4 T20 World Cups have been instrumental as West Indies is the only team in the history to win 2 Championships.
- West Indies have brought back the veterans Rampaul, Gayle, DJ Bravo & a lot of players who were the part of the 2012 & 2014 T20 World Cup Triumph.
- The missing middle order jigsaw of Marlon Samules has been seeing missing but West Indies have found a like to like replacement in the form of Roston Chase who astonishingly is going to make his debut in International Twenty 20 Cricket.
- West Indies have a lot of bashers present in the form of Pollard, Russell, Bravo and their main trait is that they can wrap up the game in 1 over.
- West Indies nemesis is spin as going bang-bang against spinners won’t be the solution as the opponent teams will ruin their match and the only way, they can overcome is that they should wait for chances/mistakes from spinners.
- There is a large scale of youth & experience which is great but at the same time there has to be some clarity as it is said too many cooks destroy the food.
- England & South Africa will most probably qualify for ICC T20 World Cup Semi Finals.
- England is on a roll as they have got players for every situation which will keep them in good stead
- South Africa is going to be the party spoilers as Proteas have found a way to dismantle the opponent through simple yet winning tricks
- Australia is hoping to get hands on title on the 11th hour which doesn’t happen overnight
- West Indies is hoping for a 3rd Title but it seems unlikely as the pressure of defending champions will be on their mind.
- Group 2
Group 2 is literally a fight-out between India, Pakistan & New Zealand. Group 2 is as follows
#India
| Year | Performance |
| 2016 | Semi Finalists |
| 2014 | Runners up |
| 2012 | Group Stage |
| 2010 | Group Stage |
In the last 4 T20 World Cups India has failed to cross the final hurdle as every time an unexpected match winner comes and ruins the hopes of a billion people.
- India has to make it clear this time that they have to clinch the title as the drought of 14 years without T20 World Cup doesn’t justify by any means & for that they need their team members to remain calm in a nightmare situation which this time may happen as the former Legendary Captain MS Dhoni is back as a Mentor.
- The spin department of India has shown that they can be ruthless as the spin duo of Jadeja & Ashwin is back and the inclusion of the novice yet crafty spinners Varun Chakravarthy & Rahul Chahar will make the opponents wary of the dice which India will throw.
- Virat Kohli & team management (Ravi Shastri, *Rohit Sharma [vice-Captain] & MS Dhoni) need to be clear that they are not chopping & changing their playing 11 like whole sale as believing in the team members is optimum as Championships are won by the team not by one or two individuals.
- The pace department of India is fast & furious with deceptive variations as the likes of Bhuvneshwar, Shami, Bumrah & Shardul would be eager to roar while these pacers should keep their heads up even if they get beating as they should emphasize on process.
- Virat Kohli has announced that he is going to quit T20I Captaincy after T20 World Cup which somewhat is a catalyst as he will give it all to make this World Cup Count & for that to happen, he should lead from the front not as a batter but as a captain who stands behind his team-mates.
#Pakistan
| Year | Performance |
| 2016 | Group Stage |
| 2014 | Group Stage |
| 2012 | Semi Finalists |
| 2010 | Semi Finalists |
The Last 4 T20 World Cups states that Pakistan is an unpredictable & mercurial team who can upset anyone & vice versa.
- Pakistan have got their Veteran, Legendary & Senior Players back in the form of Malik & Hafeez who can play with the minds of opposition & they know how to win Titles.
- Pakistan have got a dashing & sensible wicket-keeper batter in the form of Rizwan who is taking the responsibilities & reducing the pressure on other players & he needs to continue the role of enforcer as at the other end Babar Azam can play till the end of the innings.
- Pakistan has played a lot of Cricket in UAE in the last decade which may work in their favor & for that too happen they should not panic as their first match is against their arch-rivals India who have an upper hand throughout the history of ICC T20 World Cup with 5-0.
- Pakistan’s spinners Shadab & Imad are somewhat lethal too as they bowl in tandem & it looks like Malik & Hafeez would roll up their arm too which will create a web around batters.
- The Pace Battery of Pakistan should look to do the bulk of work-load particularly in the death overs even if the conditions are suiting spinners as opponent teams players are smart enough for any error.
#New Zealand
| Year | Performance |
| 2016 | Semi Finalists |
| 2014 | Semi Finalists |
| 2012 | Group Stage |
| 2010 | Group Stage |
New Zealand is somewhat the dark-horses & consistent team in the last 4 T20 World Cups.
- New Zealand is banking on their pace bowling as they have got Southee, Boult, Ferguson & Jamieson who are sturdy enough to create havoc through express pace & they should make sure that they don’t get disheartened
- Skipper Kane Williamson has a humongous task ahead of him as in the middle order the selectors have dropped/refused the veteran Ross Taylor who is used to construct the innings which is not a good decision.
- New Zealand need to play wait & hunt game as taking risks won’t be an ideal way as the batting line up is fragile with the likes of Tim Seifert, Mark Chapman, Devon Conway & Glenn Philips who don’t have ample International Experience
- The likes of Mitchell Santner, Todd Astle & Ish Sodhi are astute with their spin as New Zealand can dethrone the opponent & for that to happen New Zealand should not hesitate to play 3 spinners given the conditions.
- New Zealand would hope that James Neesham play according to his credentials as his inclusion in the team is an ominous sign as he can take the game away with both bat & ball.
#Afghanistan
| Year | Performance |
| 2016 | Group Stage |
| 2014,2012,2010* | Did not Qualify |
Afghanistan is a team which is a tyro in terms of experience but in 2016 they had defeated West Indies in the Group Stage match.
- Afghanistan should keep one thing in mind that spin is not going to be the alone weapon as their batters need to put a show & score runs in excess of 150-160.
- Afghanistan have brought back the likes of Asghar Afghan & Mohammad Shahzad who are capable of playing cameos as well as architecting the innings.
- The spin troika of Rashid, Mujeeb & Nabi is threatening not only with their cunning variations but with their ability to wrap up the over in a span of 2-3 minutes due to which the batter doesn’t even know when the over was started.
- The pace department looks a bit weak link as their pacers the likes of Hamid Hassan, Karim Janat & Naveen-ul-Haq haven’t played enough cricket with their team in the recent times.
- Afghanistan would hope that their blistering batter Zazai would be able to rip the opponent as his batting technique is quite destructive.
- India & Pakistan will most probably advance to the Semi Finals where Pakistan & New Zealand can get tied on points & ultimately NRR (Net Run Rate) will come into question.
- New Zealand’s batting is not that much eye-boggling and every time bowlers won’t make the match out of it
- Afghanistan won’t qualify as India, Pakistan & New Zealand would be fighting it out & they should try to make things tricky for these 3 teams.
- Expected Augury/Result
- Pakistan or England will win the T20 World Cup because these two teams have got distinctive traits to win the World Cup as earlier in 2009 Pakistan had won T20 World Cup whereas in 2010 England had won.
- The reason behind Pakistan is favorites is due to their mercurial nature which can spring a surprise on any given day whereas England have a team & players who can change circumstances & play according to the circumstances.
- India will play with two teams (Qualifiers T20 World Cup) before Semi Final Clash which will not hold them in a good position as at that time experimentation would be going & then all of a sudden high voltage clash won’t be good.
- South Africa’s Road is a lot of steeps which can drain them with Semi Finals & as usual they may choke.
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