The ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 has finally ended, with India defeating New Zealand by 96 runs at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad last night. The Men in Blue created history by winning their third ICC T20 World Cup title on Sunday night. They became the first team to achieve this feat.
After a month of exciting cricket affairs, the International Cricket Council (ICC) has announced the team of the tournament for the recently concluded marquee event. It has been chosen by the ICC selection panel which includes former West Indies fast bowler Ian Bishop, former England captain Eoin Morgan, coach-turned-commentator Natalie Germanos, ICC representative Gaurav Saxena and senior Sri Lankan sports journalist Rex Clementine.
No New Zealand player in ICC Team of the Tournament
There have been some surprising inclusions and exclusions in the list. No New Zealand cricketer has been able to make it to the team of the tournament. Finn Allen and Tim Seifert had a great tournament as both the openers took their team to the final of the T20 World Cup.
However, neither of them found a place in the team of the tournament. Both the batsmen scored 326 and 298 runs respectively, but were ignored. Seifert finished as the second-highest run-scorer in the competition.
Sanju Samson selected as opening batsman along with Sahibzada Farhan
Sanju Samson was a game-changer for India in the T20 World Cup. Since joining, he has scored 321 runs in just 5 innings for the Men in Blue and also scored a match-winning 89 in the final. In this way he also got the Player of the Tournament award.
Farhan has also been included in the Team of the Tournament team along with Sanju Sahibzada. He is the second opening batsman from Pakistan to finish as the leading run-scorer with 383 runs, although his team failed to qualify for the semi-finals.
Aiden Makram was elected captain
Ishan Kishan, Aiden Markram, Hardik Pandya, Will Jacks and Jason Holder were selected as middle-order players in the team of the tournament. Kishan performed brilliantly with the bat, scoring 317 runs for India and finishing fourth in the leading run scorer list.
Makaram has been named as the captain for the team of the tournament, as he scored 286 runs in the tournament and led South Africa to the semi-finals in spectacular fashion. Hardik Pandya has been paired with Will Jacques as the all-rounder, who made a huge impact in the tournament by scoring 226 runs and taking 9 wickets. Holder was also included as he played a key role for the Windies in the group stage, taking 10 wickets.
Jasprit Bumrah is leading
Jasprit Bumrah’s name had to be included as the bowler who took the highest wickets in the tournament with 14 wickets. Bumrah was also named Man of the Match for his sensational spell of 4/15 in the final.
Lungi Ngidi has also been linked with his amazing campaign, taking 12 wickets and finishing as the leading wicket-taker for the Proteas. Adil Rashid and Blessing Muzarabani are the last two players to be included. The World Cup was fantastic for Zimbabwe.
Shadley Van Schalkwyk has been added as the 12th man for her exceptional group stage performances and taking 13 wickets in just 4 matches for the USA.
ICC Team of the Tournament: Sahibzada Farhan, Sanju Samson (wk), Ishan Kishan, Aiden Markram (c), Hardik Pandya, Will Jacques, Jason Holder, Jasprit Bumrah, Lungi Ngidi, Adil Rashid, Blessing Muzarabani. 12th player Shadley Van Schalkwyk
Also read: Sri Lanka appoints World Cup-winning head coach in place of Sanath Jayasuriya
