Australia To Dominate Again? Predicting Strongest XIs of The T20 World Cup According To ICC Rankings

The much anticipated T20 World Cup 2024 hosted in USA and West Indies is about to kick start from June 1st with the first game taking place between USA and Canada on 1st June.

All the teams are currently finalising their preparations for the World Cup with the warm up games coming thick and fast. Heading into the ninth edition of T20 World Cup there are a lot of storylines to look forward to. 

England enter as the defending Champions of the tournament and looking to bounce back from a disappointing ODI World Cup campaign. On the other hand, Australia will look to continue their dominance on the ICC stage as they seek to become the first team to hold all WTC, ODI World Cup and T20 World Cup trophies at the same time. Meanwhile, India will be looking to end their 11 year drought of winning an ICC trophy. 

Also Read | T20 World Cup 2024: Unpacking Team India's STRONGEST Playing XI

As we head into the T20 World Cup, here's predicting the Strongest lineups for top 8 ranked teams in the tournament based on ICC rankings. 

India 

Ranked number 1 in ICC men's T20 rankings, led by Rohit Sharma alongside head coach Rahul Dravid, Team India will be looking to put years of disappointment at the ICC stage behind and win their first ICC trophy in 11 years. Here's how the strongest 11 for India looks like

1. Rohit Sharma (C)
2. Yashasvi Jaiswal
3. Suryakumar Yadav
4. Virat Kohli
5. Rishabh Pant (WK)
6. Hardik Pandya
7. Shivam Dube
8. Ravindra Jadeja
9. Jasprit Bumrah
10. Kuldeep Yadav
11. Arshdeep Singh

England 

Defending Champions England led by Jos Buttler are looking to prove a point and have selected a fine mix of explosive T20 players in their squad. The return of ace pacer Jofra Archer to the squad is a big boost for the side.  

1. Jos Buttler (C & WK) 
2. Phil Salt
3.  Will Jacks
4.  Jonny Bairstow
5.  Liam Livingstone
6.  Sam Curran
7.  Moeen Ali
8.  Jofra Archer
9.  Mark Wood
10.  Adil Rashid
11.  Reece Topley

Australia 

Australian Men's cricket team definitely want to add to their dominance in world cricket as they look to win their second T20 World Cup crown and will be looking to win their 11th ICC trophy. Under new captain Mitchell Marsh here is how Australia's strongest XI at the World Cup could look like. 

1. Travis Head
2.  David Warner
3.  Mitchell Marsh (C)
4.  Glenn Maxwell
5.  Josh Inglis (WK)
6.  Marcus Stoinis
7.  Tim David
8.  Pat Cummins
9.  Mitchell Starc
10.  Nathan Ellis
11.  Adam Zampa

Also Read | WATCH | Team India sweats it out in training, Hardik Pandya joins team

South Africa

South Africa showed a lot of promise in the ODI World Cup 2023 but once again they faltered in the Semi Finals against Australia. So will the team led by Aiden Markram pull up its weight in T20 World Cup 2024 to finally win at the biggest stage? 

1. Quinton de Kock (WK)
2.  Reeza Hendricks
3.  Aiden Markram (C)
4.  Heinrich Klaasen
5.  David Miller 
6. Tristan Stubbs
7.  Marco Jansen
8.  Gerald Coetzee
9.  Keshav Maharaj
10.  Kagiso Rabada
11.  Tabraiz Shamsi

New Zealand 

When it comes to World Cups and ICC tournaments, the Kiwis are always there and never seem to go away. They've been consistently reaching the finals and the semi finals so it will be interesting to look at whether this will finally be the year for the Kane Williamson led side. Here's how the Kiwis can line up. 

1. Devon Conway (WK)
2.  Rachin Ravindra
3.  Kane Williamson (C)
4.  Daryl Mitchell
5.  Glenn Phillips
6.  Mark Chapman
7.  Mitchell Santner
8.  Tim Southee
9.  Trent Boult
10.  Ish Sodhi
11.  Lockie Ferguson

West Indies

The host nation of West Indies will want to prove their doubters wrong in the tournament. Led by Rovman Powell, the West Indies side could ver well emerge as a dark horse in the tournament. 

1. Johnson Charles
2.  Brandon King
3.  Nicholas Pooran
4.  Shimron Hetmyer
5.  Rovman Powell
6.  Andre Russell
7.  Jason Holder
8.  Romario Shepherd
9.  Akeal Hosein
10.  Alzarri Joseph
11.  Gudakesh Motie

Pakistan 

Ever since they made the finals of the T20 World Cup back in 2022, Pakistan have gone through turbulent times in the last two years. Led by Babar Azam, the team searches for stability in USA and West Indies. 

1. Saim Ayub
2.  Mohammad Rizwan
3.  Babar Azam (C)
4.  Fakhar Zaman
5.  Azam Khan (WK)
6.  Iftikhar Ahmed
7.  Imad Wasim
8.  Shaheen Afridi
9.  Abbas Afridi
10.  Naseem Shah
11.  Abrar Ahmed

Sri Lanka 

Heading into the World Cup, Sri Lanka do have a lot to prove and with uncertainty over injuries to there star players it can be a tough campaign for Wanindu Hasaranga and his side. 

1. Pathum Nissanka
2.  Kusal Mendis
3.  Kamindu Mendis
4.  Sadeera Samarawickrama
5.  Angelo Mathews
6.  Charith Asalanka
7.  Dasun Shanaka
8.  Wanindu Hasaranga
9.  Dushmantha Chameera
10.  Dilshan Madushanka
11.  Maheesh Theekshana