With the tenth edition of the men’s T20 World Cup wrapped up following a historic night for India in Ahmedabad, where they beat New Zealand by a whopping 96 runs, ESPNcricinfo picks the team of the tournament here.
Also read: Samra, Airee headline Associates’ team of the tournament
Inns 5 | Runs 321 | SR 199.37 | Ave 80.25 | 50s 3
Imagine playing just five games and walking away with the Player-of-the-Tournament award. Samson started the campaign on the bench, but India’s offspin pain proved to be his gain – and he played back-to-back-to-back career-defining knocks in the knockouts. Samson finished second from top on impact points per match for this edition, and now holds the record for most sixes in an edition (24).
4:48
T20 World Cup – Aiden Markram best position is opening the batting says Ashwell Prince
SA batting coach rates Tristan Stubbs as a “selfless character”
Inns 8 | Runs 286 | SR 165.31 | Ave 47.66 | 50s 3 | Wkts 1
The second opener was a far tougher pick, what with six of the top-seven run-getters having opened at this World Cup, but Markram married volume with velocity: he struck at 180 in the powerplay, but often extended well beyond it – like against New Zealand and West Indies. And his leadership was on-point as South Africa went unbeaten into the knockouts.
2:09
T20 Wold Cup – Ishan Kishan goes straight from domestic T20s to World Cup
The podcast crew talks about Kishan’s rise and his red-hot form in the ongoing T20 World Cup
Inns 9 | Runs 317 | SR 193.29 | Ave 35.22 | 50s 3
Kishan took the tournament by storm with rampaging group-stage half-centuries as opener versus Namibia and Pakistan, and then slotted seamlessly into No. 3 through the business end, delivering high-impact performances – the best of the lot in the final. Kishan destroyed pace (strike rate of 212) but took down spin too (strike rate of 177), and his middle-overs strike rate of 214.7 was the best for any batter.
1:36
Du Plessis on Hetmyer: Extreme power but precise placement
Faf du Plessis on the batter’s masterful innings
Inns 7 | Runs 248 | SR 186.46 | Ave 41.33 | 50s 2
Only Jacob Bethell scored more runs among non-openers, but Hetmyer blended consistent returns with a seriously high tempo to get the nod. A spin-bashing of Zimbabwe was the highlight, but equally vital was his effort against Scotland after West Indies started slowly, and he also flayed brisk 20s against England and India. No one hit more sixes against spinners than Hetmyer’s 15.
2:17
T20 World Cup 2026 – India allrounder Shivam Dube on his improved performances
“My bowling has become better because of my fitness,” says India allrounder Shivam Dube after starring in win over Netherlands in the T20 World Cup
Inns 8 | Runs 235 | SR 169.06 | Ave 39.16 | Wkts 5 | ER 14.12
Dube’s impact is only fully understood by glancing at the situations he walked out to bat in: a 17-ball 27 after India had lost back-to-back wickets in the 15th over versus Pakistan; 66 off 31 against Netherlands, coming in at 69 for 3 after nine overs; 43 off 25 in the semis, featuring 22 off eight balls from Adil Rashid – who conceded 19 from his 16 other deliveries. And he signed off with the closing act of India’s record 255 for 5 in the final.
2:08
T20 World Cup – Du Plessis: Pandya’s big-match temperament worth as much as skill
Faf du Plessis and Anil Kumble on Hardik Pandya’s contribution to India’s win
Inns 9 | Runs 217 | SR 160.74 | Ave 27.12 | Wkts 9 | ER 8.81
No one bowled more death overs (17-20) than Hardik’s eight – level with four others – and he went under tens in the phase. But Hardik also scored 114 runs at the death – the second-highest for any batter – while striking at 190. And he also bowled ten overs in the powerplay, going at eight per over. The all-round value came to the fore in the semis: 27 off 12 to drive India towards 250, and then 2 for 38 to keep England shy of the same.
2:25
Du Plessis: Jacks doesn’t get enough credit for his bowling
Faf du Plessis talks about the importance of Will Jacks as a spin option in this England line-up
Inns 8 | Runs 226 | SR 176.56 | Ave 56.50 | Wkts 9 | ER 9.75
He may have been pipped to the official honours by Samson, but Jacks finished nearly 100 points clear atop ESPNcricinfo’s MVP standings. His finishing kick bailed England out several times – 39* off 18 against Nepal, 53* off 22 versus Italy, 32* off 18 to pull off a heist over New Zealand. Add to that the wily offspin: only Jasprit Bumrah and Rachin Ravindra took more wickets from the Super Eight onwards than Jacks’ seven, the highlight being his 3 for 22 to derail Sri Lanka.
1:56
T20 World Cup 2026 – Bishop: Holder pivotal in work-in-progress West Indies bowling attack
Ian Bishop looks ahead to West Indies taking on England at Wankhede
Mat 7 | Wkts 10 | ER 8.86 | Ave 35.25 | Runs 141 | SR 174.07
Holder claimed the majority of his wickets in the group stage, proving too good for Scotland (3 for 30) and Nepal (4 for 27). With bat, he came good in every game against higher-ranked opponents: 33 off 17 to supply a late charge versus England, 49 off 31 in a rescue act against South Africa, and 37* off 22 to help West Indies compete with India. Holder finished eighth on impact points.
1:46
ENG vs WI – Varun Aaron – Adil Rashid is an all-time T20 great
He is a magician, says Varun Aaron
Mat 8 | Wkts 13 | ER 8.15 | Ave 19.23
Rashid takes the specialist spinner’s slot ahead of Varun Chakravarthy, whose tournament fizzled out after the group stage. The 2 for 16 amid West Indies piling on 196 at Wankhede was his standout spell, but Rashid also made the most of the conditions in Sri Lanka during the Super Eight, and did his bit to limit the damage against India in the semis.
3:29
Guptill: Bumrah’s slower ball is so hard to pick
Faf du Plessis, Anil Kumble and Martin Guptill on the point of difference that Jasprit Bumrah brings to India’s attack
Mat 8 | Wkts 14 | ER 6.21 | Ave 12.42
45 to win off 18, and the opponents actively sought to play out the 18th over, on a night when 499 runs were scored. Peak Bumrah. And just like 2024, there were multiple iterations of it. Even in defeat – 3 for 15 while South Africa hit 187. And then 4 for 15 when he returned to his home ground, on the night that mattered the most. Powerplay economy 5.9; middle overs 6.3; death overs 6.6. ‘Genie‘, indeed.
2:04
Faf du Plessis on Lungi Ngidi’s development as a T20 bowler
The former South Africa captain talks about how Lungi Ngidi developed his slower ball skills at CSK
Mat 7 | Wkts 12 | ER 7.19 | Ave 15.58
Till the end of the Super Eight stage, Ngidi was a fair shout for bowler of the tournament. After starting with a four-for against Canada, he took 3 for 26 in the 187-plays-187 game versus Afghanistan. There was a 3 for 30 against West Indies too, but Ngidi’s best performance – and one of the best all tournament – was a wicketless one: none for 15 in four overs of slower-ball wizardry to stifle India.
Mat 6 | Wkts 13 | Econ 7.88 | Ave 14.46
The wrecker-in-chief in the stunning win over Australia, Muzarabani’s group-stage numbers were barely believable: nine wickets, average under eight, economy below six. He maintained respectability even as Zimbabwe were tonked for 250-plus in Super Eight outings against West Indies (2 for 42) and India (1 for 43).
1:25
T20 World Cup 2026 – Urooj Mumtaz – Sahibzada Farhan is now coming of age
Urooj Mumtaz on Sahibzada Farhan’s knock
Bench: Sahibzada Farhan, Sikandar Raza, Shadley van Schalkwyk
Among the crowd of opening options to miss out, Sahibzada Farhan came closest: a record tally at the men’s T20 World Cup (383 runs), and the first man with two hundreds in an edition.
Sikandar Raza played high-impact cameos in Zimbabwe’s group-stage wins over Australia and Sri Lanka, before ending the campaign with a fine all-round show versus South Africa.
Shadley van Schalkwyk was one of the stories of the opening week – 4 for 25 against India, 4 for 25 against Pakistan – and the USA seamer stayed on top of the wicket-taking chart right until the final innings of the tournament.
