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As the world prepares for the T20 World Cup 2026 to kick off on February 7, the spotlight has shifted to veteran insights regarding the favorites. In a recent analysis shared via the Sky Sports Cricket YouTube channel on Tuesday, January 27, 2026, former England captain Eoin Morgan provided a comprehensive breakdown of the tournament, highlighting why one particular side enters the tournament as a nearly invincible force.
Eoin Morgan reveals which team he sees as the ‘team to beat’ in T20 World Cup 2026
Morgan did not mince words when discussing the defending champions, labeling them the team to beat by a significant margin. He attributed this dominance to a combination of depth and local familiarity.
“Well, here I think the out and out favorites by a country mile are India. Home conditions, they won’t have to play a game outside of India if they go all the way to the final. Then there’s the talent they keep producing across all bases. When you think of T20 and how unpredictable it can be, you want to box off going into a tournament the uncertainty of what might occur. That means top-order batters who are aggressive, middle-order batters who can play spin on slow wickets and are also power hitters, spinners that turn it both ways, ideally at least one wrist spinner in your squad, and then quicks with variations, left-arm, right-arm, people who can bowl it to death.” Morgan said.
While the technical superiority of the Indian side is evident, Morgan also discussed the human element that could impact the co-hosts. He noted that while their roster is head and shoulders above everybody else, the burden of expectation from a home crowd is a factor that every world-class team must navigate.
“India stands head and shoulders above everybody else before a ball is bowled. Now, we know the unpredictability of T20 World Cups, you’re dealing with teams, humans, emotion, and the pressure that home advantage sometimes applies to teams around the world. So it’s going to be fascinating to see how they both handle it and perform from start to finish. Sitting alongside or behind India or Australia alone, then I’d have teams like South Africa, England, Sri Lanka, and New Zealand as well, all capable of getting to the latter stages, semi-finals, or final, but I think they’re mainly competing against India.” Morgan concluded.
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Dominant form and T20 World Cup 2026 schedule
Heading into the tournament, the ‘Men in Blue’ are in clinical form, currently leading their five-match home series against New Zealand with a commanding 3-0 lead. Suryakumar Yadav‘s side has been ruthless, securing victories by margins as large as eight wickets and 60 balls to spare, underlining their status as world-rank leaders.
India will look to carry this momentum into their World Cup campaign, which begins with a high-energy opener against the USA at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on February 7. This will be followed by a clash against Namibia in Delhi on February 12, before moving to Colombo for the tournament’s most anticipated group stage match against Pakistan on February 15. They conclude their Group A fixtures on February 18 against the Netherlands at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, the very venue that will later host the tournament’s grand final on March 8.
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