Former India spinner Ravichandran Ashwin warned that the T20 World Cup 2026’s 20-team format and one-sided early matches, combined with frequent ICC events and a crowded cricket calendar, could reduce fan interest and viewership.
Former Team India off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin issued a brutal warning to the International Cricket Council (ICC) concerning the upcoming edition of the T20 World Cup 2026. The marquee event will take place from February 7 and March 8 in India and Sri Lanka, with 20 teams vying for the prestigious title.
India will enter the T20 World Cup 2026 as the defending champions of the tournament, having won the title last year under the leadership of Rohit Sharma. The Men in Blue, led by Suryakumar Yadav, have been clubbed in Group A alongside the USA, Pakistan, Namibia, and the Netherlands, and will begin their quest for the title defence against the USA.
Since India is hosting the tournament, alongside Sri Lanka, Team India is one of the strong favourites to win the T20 World Cup. Their impressive run of form in the bilateral T20I series since the last edition of the marquee event has underlined India’s strong position in the format heading into the tournament.
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‘No One is Going to Watch’
With the T20 World Cup 2026 set to take place next month, on February 7, Ravichandran Ashwin sounded the alarm over the tournament’s structure, which might put viewers’ interest at risk.
Speaking on his YouTube channel ‘Ash ki Baat’, veteran Indian spinner stated that early one-sided fixtures, including India’s group stage matches against the USA and Namibia, might prompt fans to tune out in the early stages of the tournament, thereby affecting the overall viewership.
“No one is going to watch the ICC T20 World Cup this time. India vs USA, India vs. Namibia—these are games that will literally pull you away from the World Cup,” Ashwin said.
Canada, Italy, Namibia, the Netherlands, the USA, Nepal, Oman, and the UAE are associate teams participating in the tournament. The USA is the only associate team that qualified after finishing in the top 8 of the previous edition of the tournament, while other teams secured their berth through qualifiers. This factor, Ravichandran Ashwin believes, has led to dilution in the competitiveness in the early stages of the tournament.
A Lack of Anticipation Around the T20 World Cup
Ravichandran Ashwin recalled that the World Cups in the past carried a different aura, as the anticipation used to build months in advance, given that the tournament takes place only once every four years. He believes that a similar sense of excitement is missing in the build-up to the T20 World Cup.
“Back in 1996, 1999, and 2003, when I was in school, the World Cup used to feel special. We collected World Cup cards and got the schedule printed because the tournament came once every four years. That anticipation used to build naturally,” the 38-year-old said.
“India would face teams like England and Sri Lanka in the first round itself, and that made it even more exciting. In today’s era, that sense of anticipation is missing,” he added.
The T20 World Cup is one of the prestigious ICC tournaments, with its first edition being held in 2007 in South Africa, where India became the inaugural champions of the tournament and has evolved significantly over the years in terms of format and scale.
Why Ashwin’s Remark Raises Serious Concerns?
Ravichandran Ashwin’s remark on the lack of anticipation for the upcoming edition of the T20 World Cup stems from the fact that the frequency of the ICC events and the widening gap between established teams and emerging teams could dilute the interest of the fans to watch the early stages of the tournament. Since the T20 World Cup 2024, the tournament has become a 20-team competition, resulting in several predictable and one-sided fixtures.
In the 2014, 2016, 2021, and 2022 editions of the T20 World Cup saw the top-ranked teams skipped the first round by getting a bye to the second round, while the lower-ranked teams and associate teams played in the first round to join them. The change since the 2024 edition has meant that all 20 teams now start in the tournament, leading to more mismatched contests and reducing the sense of anticipation for the high-stakes drama.
In 2020, COVID-19 put all the sporting events on hold, which saw the T20 World Cup postponed to 2021. Since 2019, six major ICC men’s tournaments have taken place, including two ODI World Cups, three T20 World Cups, and a Champions Trophy. The upcoming edition of the T20 World Cup will be the seventh major ICC event in less than six years.
Therefore, the increasing number of tournaments risks overstraining fans, reducing the uniqueness and excitement that once made the World Cup a marquee event. Additionally, multiple bilateral series and franchise T20 leagues over the year further fragment the viewers, making it difficult for the fans to stay engaged from the start of the marquee event.
It remains to be seen whether the fans will stay engaged throughout the early stages of the tournament, given the one-sided fixtures and crowded cricket calendar.
