The 2026 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup is all set to get underway on February 7. A total of 55 matches will be played as part of the tournament, with India and Sri Lanka co-hosting the competition. Matches will be played at five venues across India and three in Sri Lanka. Team India are also the defending champions in the event, having won the 2024 edition held in West Indies and United States.
A total of 20 teams will take part in the 2026 Men’s T20 World Cup and have been divided into four groups of five teams each. India and Pakistan have been placed in Group A, while Sri Lanka and Australia are part of Group B. Group C includes West Indies and England, while New Zealand, South Africa and Afghanistan have been placed in Group D.
A number of star players from across teams will exhibit their skills in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 in India and Sri Lanka. In this feature, we predict the top five run-getters in the competition.
#5 Phil Salt (England)
Destructive England opener Phil Salt could set the T20 World Cup on fire if he gets his act right. The 29-year-old keeper-batter has the ability to take advantage of the powerplay and can be unstoppable if he gets going. In 52 T20Is, Salt has scored 1,587 runs at an average of 37.78 and a strike rate of 166.52.
The England batter has already slammed four hundreds in T20Is to go with seven fifties. Suryakumar Yadav, Rohit Sharma and Glenn Maxwell are the only other batters with four or more T20I tons, which says a lot about Salt’s ability. Looking at his recent form, Salt played some impactful knocks in ILT20 and scored 46 off 35 in the first T20I against Sri Lanka in Pallekele.
#4 Quinton de Kock (South Africa)
South Africa’s Quinton de Kock is among the most dangerous openers in world cricket in the white-ball formats. And while there may have been periods when he has not looked in great shape, the southpaw has been in rather impressive form in the build-up to the 2026 T20 World Cup.
De Kock clobbered his career-best T20I score of 115 off just 49 balls against West Indies in Centurion a few days back. The Proteas batter’s whirlwind knock featured six fours and 10 sixes. Before that, De Kock was the leading run-getter in SA20, with 390 runs in 11 innings at a strike rate of 148.85. If he can maintain his impressive form, De Kock can set the 2026 T20 World Cup on fire.
#3 Travis Head (Australia)
Destructive Australian opener Travis Head will be among the players to watch out for in the 2026 T20 World Cup. The southpaw had a sensational Ashes campaign, where he played T20-type knocks in Test cricket. Head had a terrific 2023 ODI World Cup in India, where he was the Player of the Match in the semifinal against South Africa and the final against the hosts.
Head has a strike rate of 156.52 in 49 T20I matches. The 32-year-old has been among the standout performers for SRH in the IPL. With Abhishek Sharma, he has produced some fantastic partnerships. Head loves the big occasion, so it wouldn’t be a surprise if he has a memorable 2026 T20 World Cup campaign.
#2 Abhishek Sharma (India)
Young Team India opener Abhishek has taken world cricket by storm with his exploits in T20I cricket. He loves going after the bowling from the first delivery itself, which is why he had hit first-ball sixes on a number of occasions already. Such has been his impact in a relatively short career so far, a number of experts and fans are backing him to top the run charts in T20 World Cup 2026.
Abhishek has played 38 T20Is so far in which he has smashed 1,297 runs at an average of 37.05 and a sensational strike rate of 194.74, with two hundreds and eight fifties. The southpaw is only 25 years old and seems to be hitting the peak of his batting powers. The Indian team and the fans would be hoping for him to have an outstanding T20 World Cup campaign.
#1 Suryakumar Yadav (India)
Team India captain Suryakumar began the year with plenty of question marks over his batting form. The right-handed batter had a forgettable 2025 with the willow. In 19 innings, he scored just 218 runs at an average of 13.62 and an underwhelming strike rate of 123.16, with a best of 47*. India desperately needed him to rediscover his mojo with the bat in hand ahead of the T20 World Cup.
Right through his barren run, Suryakumar maintained he was out of runs and not out of form. The 35-year-old walked the talk with a brilliant performance in the home series against New Zealand. He was the Player of the Series for smashing 242 runs at an average of 80.67 and a strike rate of 196.75. Suryakumar looked back to his best, a great sign for Team India ahead of the 2026 T20 World Cup.
Edited by Renin Wilben Albert
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