Harbhajan Singh predicts semifinalists of T20 World Cup 2026; leaves out two-time champions

Former Indian off-spinner Harbhajan Singh picked his four semifinalists for the upcoming 2026 T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka (via Gulf Today). The marquee event begins on February 7, with the finale scheduled for March 8.

Harbhajan went with Team India as one of his semifinalists, thanks to the side's incredible T20I form, having won 16 out of 19 completed games this year. The Men in Blue will be defending champions entering the tournament, having won the 2024 edition.

The former spinner went with Australia and South Africa as his next two picks, followed by Afghanistan as his final choice. The Aussies are looking to win their second T20 World Cup title, having emerged triumphant in 2021.

Meanwhile, Afghanistan and South Africa are still searching for their maiden white-ball World Cup trophy. The Proteas came ever so close in the previous T20 World Cup in 2024 but suffered a heartbreaking defeat to India in the final.

On the other hand, Afghanistan punched above its weight in the same edition, qualifying for the semifinal.

Harbhajan left out two-time T20 World Cup champions, England and the West Indies, from his semifinal picks.

"World Cup pressure is something which they need to handle better" - Harbhajan Singh on Team India

Harbhajan Singh believes Team India has an excellent opportunity to defend their T20 World Cup title, especially on home soil. However, the 2007 T20 World Cup winner cautioned the side against the pressure of the tournament, given the massive expectations from the fans.

"I think India has a very good chance to win the world Cup because they are a very strong team and they are playing at home. They know the conditions better than anybody else. But the World Cup pressure is something which they need to handle better than the others, which is the most important thing," said Harbhajan Singh (via the aforementioned source).

Harbhajan concluded by mentioning the likes of Abhishek Sharma, Hardik Pandya, Suryakumar Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, and Arshdeep Singh as the key players for India in the 2026 T20 World Cup. While Abhishek will be playing his first World Cup, the other four each played crucial roles for India in the 2024 T20 World Cup title run.

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Edited by Venkatesh Ravichandran