Who Are The Leading Contenders To Win The T20 World Cup?

Brenda Mitchell | 12:00am BST 10 October 2021

Cricketing fans will be kept busy over the coming month, as 16 nations do battle at the T20 World Cup. It has been a long wait for the competition to get underway, as it was due to take place last year in Australia. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the date of the event was pushed back 12 months, and it will now be taking place in Oman and the UAE.

The final is set to take place in the middle of November at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium. Betting for the competition is fierce, and you can find a detailed cricket betting guide at Playorbet.com. But, which nations have the best chance of reaching the showpiece event?

India

It’s always hard to look past India when it comes to ODI competitions with a stellar selection of players at their disposal. Their form throughout the year has been excellent, as they recently overcame England in a five-day test. In shorter form cricket, India were beaten by Sri Lanka in a three-match series, but they did claim victory in the ODI test that occurred previously.

Many experts are already predicting that India will make the final, which would be very fitting given that it will be Virat Kohli’s final T20 World Cup as captain of India. The legendary star has scored 3,159 runs in T20 internationals in the 90 matches that he has played, and has an incredible batting average of 52.65. The added quality of Rohit Sharma and Rishabh Pant makes them very hard to oppose.

England

Michael Vaughan already admitted earlier in the year that he believes the final in the T20 World Cup will see England and India clash. It is very hard to oppose that stance, as they are the two clear favourites in the betting for the competition this month. England certainly have a number of absences to contend with though, as ODI World Cup hero Ben Stokes is unavailable, while Jofra Archer remains on the sidelines.

However, in Liam Livingstone, England have one of the most in-form batters in the world in shorter form games. Livingstone has scored 206 runs in eight T20 internationals, and was one of the huge breakout stars of The Hundred, as he led the competition for sixes scores and was awarded the MVP award. His Birmingham Phoenix teammate, Moeen Ali, will also be a pivotal player for England in the World Cup. 

West Indies

It’s hard to ignore the clear chance that the reigning champions have of successfully defending their crown in the UAE and Oman over the coming month. The West Indies are the only two-time winners of the T20 World Cup, having won the competition for a second time in 2016.

They beat India in a very competitive semi-final showdown, before beating England by four wickets in the final. The West Indies have lost just 12 times at the T20 World Cup, only India have lost fewer games. They have already beaten Australia and India in T20 match-ups this year, most recently beating the Aussies 4-1 after five matches. It’s hard to dismiss their obvious chances.