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The Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 promises plenty of action with the event happening across India and Sri Lanka. 20 teams are divided into four groups of five. Group D is called the group of Death for a reason. Afghanistan, New Zealand and South Africa will be looking to fight for the top two. But in between comes Canada and the UAE, which could spring a surprise of two of their own. Here’s the Group D preview and what we can expect from the Group of Death.
Men’s T20 World Cup 2026: Group D Preview
Afghanistan
T20 Ranking: 10th
Best Result in the T20 World Cup: Semi Finalist – 2024 Edition
What to Expect: Super 8s
Overview:
The underdogs of the tournament. They have been excellent in the shortest format of the game. In the last World Cup, they defeated New Zealand and Australia for the first time and played the semi-finals, where they lost to South Africa.
However, this time, Afghanistan may not cross the final four this time. While their batters have been in good form, they tend to struggle in bigger games, as it has been evident in last year’s Asia Cup and Tri-series final. Though one cannot write them off.
Top-rated batsman: Ibrahim Zadran – 11th
Top-rated bowler: Rashid Khan – 3rd
Schedule
8 February – vs New Zealand
11 February – vs South Africa
16 February – vs UAE
19 February – vs Canada
Canada
T20 Ranking: 19th
Best Result in the T20 World Cup: Round 1 – 2024 Edition
What to Expect: Round 1
Overview:
Canada sprung a surprise in the 2024 T20 World Cup when they defeated Ireland by a close margin. They nearly pulled off a stunning win over Pakistan. That tournament was their first T20 World event. So, they can surprise everyone with a win of their own.
That was not the case in warm-ups, though. They lost to both Italy and Nepal, with their batting failing to keep up. If their batting can keep up with the game, their bowlers can defend targets for sure.
Top-rated batsman: No one in the top 100
Top-rated bowler: No one in the top 100
Schedule
9 February – vs South Africa
13 February – vs UAE
17 February – vs New Zealand
19 February – vs Afghanistan
New Zealand
T20 Ranking: 4th
Best Result in the T20 World Cup: Runners Up – 2021 Edition
What to Expect: Super 8s
Overview:
They missed out from Super 8s after their defeats to the West Indies and Afghanistan in the 2024 edition, which also saw the end of careers of Kane Williamson, Trent Boult and Tim Southee. Under Mitchell Santner, they have some good wins under his belt.
New Zelaand Mens will be looking to take inspiration from their women’s team, who won the 2024 Women’s World Cup title. They have a pretty good team backed by solid batters despite their 4-1 loss to India recently.
Top-rated batsman: Tim Seifert – 9th
Top-rated bowler: Jacob Duffy – 5th
Schedule
8 February – vs Afghanistan
10 February – vs UAE
14 February – vs South Africa
17 February – vs Canada
Also Read: ICC T20 World Cup 2026 – Group A Preview
South Africa
T20 Ranking: 5th
Best Result in the T20 World Cup: Runners Up – 2024 Edition
What to Expect: Semi-Finals
Overview:
They came ever so close to getting their hands on a World Cup trophy, but they fell just short. 2024 has been a heartbreak for South Africa, where both their men’s and women’s teams suffered defeats in the final. But they cannot be written off. It always takes one moment to claim victory.
Despite none of their batters or bowlers being in the top 15 of the T20I rankings, they have been really good as a unit. They have won two series and tied one in the last five series. Expect them to put on a big show.
Top-rated batsman: Dewarld Brevis – 17th
Top-rated bowler: Marco Jansen – 31st
Schedule
9 February – vs Canada
11 February – vs Afghanistan
14 February – vs New Zealand
18 February – vs UAE
United Arab Emirates
T20 Ranking: 17th
Best Result in the T20 World Cup: Round 1 – 2022 Edition
What to Expect: Round 1
Overview:
The UAE have played only two T20 World events so far, and both times they have ended in Round 1. Although their campaign in 2022 was much better. Barring their game against Sri Lanka, they gave a good fight to the Netherlands and defeated Namibia.
This will be their third event. But their recent defeat to Italy in the warm-ups raises questions about how they will approach this event. They failed to win a single game in the UAE tri-series last year and managed just one win in the Asia Cup 2025.
Top-rated batsman: M Waseem – Joint 36th
Top-rated bowler: Haider Ali – 67th
Schedule
10 February – vs New Zealand
13 February – vs Canada
16 February – vs Afghanistan
18 February – vs South Africa
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