Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai will host one of the two semifinals of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026, whereas the tournament’s opener and final match will take place at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.
According to a report in the Indian Express on Sunday (November 9), the 20-team tournament will be played from February 7 to March 8, and like the 2023 ODI World Cup, Ahmedabad will stage the tournament’s opener as well as the decider, whereas Mumbai will host one of the two semifinals.
In case there is a semifinal match between India and Pakistan, then it will be played in Colombo, and the other last four fixtures will take place in Mumbai.
In the 2016 edition of the T20 World Cup and the 2023 ODI World Cup as well, Wankhede Stadium played as the host of India’s semifinal match, whereas in 2011, the iconic stadium in the capital of Maharashtra hosted the ODI World Cup final.
Apart from Mumbai and Ahmedabad, Delhi, Chennai and Kolkata will host the India leg, whereas three venues in Sri Lanka will also host the matches.
As per the available information, the Indian team will play their matches in all four major cities—Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata and Chennai—and Bengaluru might get a chance to host a few warm-up matches. But it remains to be seen whether the warm-up matches will be played at the Centre of Excellence (CoE) or M. Chinnaswamy Stadium.
The International Cricket Council (ICC) is expected to announce the schedule of the Men’s T20 World Cup in the coming days.
According to the report, “In a meeting held among top BCCI officials, it was decided that this time the World Cup will be played in fewer cities compared to the 2023 World Cup, and each venue is expected to get at least six games each.”
The ICC has reportedly made it clear to the BCCI that if Sri Lanka qualifies for the semi-finals, then they will play their match in Colombo. And if Pakistan progress to the final, then the summit clash will be played outside India. The India-Pakistan match will also be played in Sri Lanka.
