All the squads for the 2021 T20 World Cup

Afghanistan

Tumult and turmoil in their home nation has Afghanistan's status for the T20 World Cup under a cloud, and it remains to be seen what action the ICC will take following the Taliban's takeover and their disdain for women's cricket.

On-field, there is turmoil too, with Rashid Khan announcing he has quit the captaincy after Afghanistan officials failed to consult him over the squad selections, with Mohammad Nabi to take over.

If they participate in the tournament, Big Bash fans will have a keen eye on this team with several players expected to turn out in BBL|11, including Rashid, Nabi, Mujeeb Ur Rahman and Qais Ahmed.

First game: October 25 v Group B winner

Squad: Mohammad Nabi (c), Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Hazratullah Zazai, Usman Ghani, Mohammad Shahzad, Hashmatullah Shahidi, Asghar Afghan, Gulbadin Naib, Najibullah Zadran, Karim Janat, Rashid Khan, Mujeeb ur Rahman, Hamid Hassan, Farid Ahmed Malik, Naveen ul Haq. Reserves: Sharafuddin Ashraf, Samiullah Shinwari, Dawlat Zadran, Fazal Haq Farooqi

Australia

After opting to skip the winter tours, six big guns - David Warner, Steve Smith, Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, Pat Cummins and Kane Richardson – return to the squad to boost Australia's chances of winning a maiden T20 World Cup crown.

Captain Aaron Finch is coming off knee surgery after an injury in the Caribbean, while Australia's state border closures and lockdowns in Sydney and Melbourne have and will continue to disrupt preparation for players not involved in the IPL.

Wicketkeeper-batsman Josh Inglis is the big inclusion after rising to prominence with irresistible form in the past two KFC BBL seasons and two T20 tons in England's T20 Blast competition this winter.

First game: October 23 v South Africa

Squad: Aaron Finch (c), Ashton Agar, Pat Cummins (vc), Josh Hazlewood, Josh Inglis, Mitchell Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Kane Richardson, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Marcus Stoinis, Mitchell Swepson, Matthew Wade, David Warner, Adam Zampa. Reserves: Dan Christian, Nathan Ellis, Daniel Sams.

Bangladesh

Having beaten Australia (5-0) and New Zealand (3-2) on home soil in the past few weeks, Bangladesh will enter the T20 World Cup full of confidence.

They have never made it to the knockout stages and will pin their fortunes to the form of star allrounder Shakib Al Hasan. But he will not be alone, with the experience of Mushfiqur Rahim in the batting line-up and the supple wrists and canny cutters of seamer Mustafizur Rahman to be key weapons.

Veteran batsman Tamim Iqbal is missing from the squad, with pressure on 22-year-old opener Naim Sheikh to fill the gap.

First game: October 17 v Scotland

Squad: Mahmud Ullah (Captain), Naim Sheikh, Soumya Sarkar, Liton Das, Shakib Al Hasan, Mushfiqur Rahim, Afif Hossain, Nurul Hasan, Mahedi Hasan, Nasum Ahmed, Mustafizur Rahman, Shoriful Islam, Taskin Ahmed, Saifuddin, Shamim Hossain, Rubel Hossain

England

The biggest news for England is the players who won't be at the tournament; allrounder Ben Stokes continues his indefinite absence from the game to prioritise his mental health, while Jofra Archer is out following elbow surgery.

They have handed a surprise recall to Tymal Mills, whose last appearance for England was in February 2017, and they still boast a formidable batting line-up, with big hitters Jos Buttler, Jonny Bairstow and Liam Livingstone as well as skipper Eoin Morgan.

Spinners Adil Rashid and Moeen Ali will also prove to be a handful.

First game: October 23 v West Indies

Squad: Eoin Morgan, Moeen Ali, Jonathan Bairstow, Sam Billings, Jos Buttler, Tom Curran, Chris Jordan, Liam Livingstone, Dawid Malan, Tymal Mills, Adil Rashid, Jason Roy, David Willey, Chris Woakes, Mark Wood. Reserves: Liam Dawson, James Vince, Reece Topley

India

Ravichandran Ashwin returns to India's T20 set-up for the first time since 2017, and inspirational leader MS Dhoni has been roped in to mentor the squad.

Ashwin is one of three specialist slow bowlers, along with leg-spinner Rahul Chahar and mystery spinner Varun Chakravarthy, but wrist-spinners Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav were omitted and opener Shikhar Dhawan was also left out.

Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul are likely to open for India while Ishan Kishan, who can also keep wicket, was picked as a third opening option.

Still the tournament's hosts, India will miss the home-crowd support with this event shifted to the UAE due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

First game: October 24 v Pakistan

Squad: Virat Kohli (c), Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant (wk), Ishan Kishan (wk), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Rahul Chahar, Ravichandran Ashwin, Axar Patel, Varun Chakravarthy, Jasprit Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohammad Shami. Reserves: Shreyas Iyer, Deepak Chahar, Shardul Thakur

Ireland

Andy Balbirnie's squad has called in uncapped spin-bowling allrounder Graham Kennedy, while they’ve also recalled 26-year-old offie Andy McBrine for the tournament.

They’ve named an extended squad of 18 that will trimmed to 15 in early October, with the other three travelling as reserves.

First game: October 18 v Netherlands

Squad: Andrew Balbirnie (c), Mark Adair, Curtis Campher, Gareth Delany, George Dockrell, Josh Little, Andrew McBrine, Kevin O’Brien, Neil Rock, Simi Singh, Paul Stirling, Harry Tector, Lorcan Tucker, Ben White, Craig Young. Reserves: Shane Getkate, Graham Kennedy, Barry McCarthy

Namibia

Namibia will make their T20 World Cup debut in this tournament, but their big inclusion already has plenty of international experience.

Former South Africa international David Wiese, who is now a regular on the T20 circuit (he took 5-25 for St Lucia in the CPL recently), has now qualified for Namibia having left South Africa behind to take a Kolpak deal in 2016-17.

They face a tough initiation to global tournaments with an opening match against Sri Lanka, and their stocks have been further weakened by the retirements of opener Jean-Pierre Kotze and spinner Zhivago Groenewald since the 2019 qualifying tournament.

First game: October 19 v Sri Lanka

Squad: Gerhard Erasmus (c), Stephen Baard, Karl Birkenstock. Michau du Preez, Jan Frylinck, Zane Green, Nicol Lofie-Eaton, Bernard Scholtz, Ben Shikongo, JJ Smit, Ruben Trumpelmann, Michael van Lingen, David Wiese, Craig Williams, Picky Ya France. Mauritius Ngupita

Netherlands

The Netherlands have included 41-year-old Ryan ten Doeschate for his final World Cup, with the veteran hoping for an enjoyable swansong before he retires at the end of the year.

The likes of Stephan Myburgh and Roelof van der Merwe will be key players for the Dutch along with Australian Ben Cooper, while fast bowler Paul van Meekeren – who recently became the first Dutch player to ever be drafted in the Caribbean Premier League – will lead a strong pace attack.

First game: October 18 v Ireland

Squad: Pieter Seelaar (c), Colin Ackermann, Philippe Boissevain, Ben Cooper, Bas de Leede, Scott Edwards, Brandon Glover, Fred Klaassen, Stephan Myburgh, Max O’Dowd, Ryan Ten Doeschate, Logan van Beek, Timm van der Gugten, Roelof van der Merwe, Paul van Meekeren

New Zealand

With Kane Williamson at the helm, New Zealand cannot be underestimated in any format, and this tournament will be no different.

Martin Guptill is a proven dangerous batter, and with Devon Conway and Glenn Phillips they have a powerful batting line-up.

Tim Southee and Trent Boult lead a pace attack also featuring Kyle Jamieson and Lockie Ferguson, while the spin of Ish Sodhi and Mitchell Santner will be pivotal.

First game: October 26 v Pakistan

Squad: Kane Williamson (c), Todd Astle, Trent Boult, Mark Chapman, Devon Conway, Lockie Ferguson, Martin Guptill, Kyle Jamieson, Daryl Mitchell, Jimmy Neesham, Glenn Phillips, Mitchell Santner, Tim Seifert (wk), Ish Sodhi, Tim Southee. Reserve: Adam Milne

Oman

The core of an experienced group that helped Oman to qualify for this tournament returns for the Group Stages of the tournament.

Skipper Zeeshan Maqsood and 10 others from that successful campaign all return while they bring a new-look spin attack in Aayan Khan and Nester Dhamba plus allrounder Khawar Ali.

First game: October 17 v PNG

Squad: Zeeshan Maqsood (c), Aqib Ilyas, Jatinder Singh, Khawar Ali, Mohammad Nadeem, Ayaan Khan, Suraj Kumar, Sandeep Goud, Nester Dhamba, Kaleemullah, Bilal Khan, Naseem Khushi, Sufyan Mehmood, Fayyaz Butt, Khurram Khan

Pakistan

Asif Ali and Khushdil Shah were the surprise inclusions in the Pakistan squad, while former skipper Sarfaraz Ahmed was overlooked in favour of young 'keeper Azam Khan.

Their tournament begins with a blockbuster clash against India, and they will have plenty of experience of playing in the UAE to draw from.

They will also be under new leadership, with head coach Misbah ul Haq and bowling coach Waqar Younis both stepping down from their posts within hours of the T20 World Cup squad being named.

First game: October 24 v India

Squad: Babar Azam (captain), Shadab Khan (vice-captain), Asif Ali, Fakhar Zaman, Haider Ali, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Imad Wasim, Mohammad Hafeez, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Shoaib Malik. Reserves: Khushdil Shah, Shahnawaz Dahani, Usman Qadir

Papua New Guinea

This will be an ICC global tournament debut for the Barramundis, who will start the Group Stage of the tournament with a match against Oman.

Led by skipper Assad Vala, PNG will look to leg-spinning allrounder Charles Amini and medium-pacer Norman Vanua to lead the bowling attack while Tony Ura and Vala will be their key source of runs.

PNG won five of their six matches at the 2019 qualifying tournament, losing the final to the Netherlands, and will be looking to make a splash in the spotlight.

Coached by Carl Sandri, who famously hit his first delivery for six in the BBL, they also have former South Australia quick Chadd Sayers as their fast bowling coach.

First game: October 17 v Oman

Squad: Assad Vala (c), Charles Amini, Lega Siaka, Norman Vanua, Nosaina Pokana, Kipling Doriga, Tony Ura, Hiri Hiri, Gaudi Toka, Sese Bau, Damien Ravu, Kabua Vagi-Morea, Simon Atai, Jason Kila, Chad Soper, Jack Gardner

Scotland

The Scottish side will lean heavily on the experience of their veterans, led by captain Kyle Coetzer, with Richie Berrington, Calum Macleod, Safyaan Sharif, Matthew Cross and Ally Evans all included.

Seven players – Dylan Budge, Chris Greaves, Oli Hairs, Chris Sole, Hamza Tahir, Craig Wallace and Brad Wheal – will be making their debut at an ICC global event, and Scotland have roped in former England batter Jonathan Trott as a consultant coach to help them prepare.

Their squad of 17 will be trimmed to 15 with two reserves in October.

First game: October 17 v Bangladesh

Squad: Kyle Coetzer (captain), Richard Berrington, Dylan Budge, Matthew Cross (wk), Josh Davey, Ally Evans, Chris Greaves, Michael Leask, Calum Macleod, George Munsey, Safyaan Sharif, Hamza Tahir, Craig Wallace, Mark Watt, Brad Wheal

South Africa

The Proteas have never made it past the semi-final stage of any World Cup tournament, and this squad looks entirely different to those that have fallen just short of the ultimate glory in the past.

Gone from international cricket are AB de Villiers, Faf du Plessis, JP Duminy, Dale Steyn, Chris Morris and Imran Tahir, while skipper Temba Bavuma – who is expected to overcome a thumb injury that put him out of the series against Sri Lanka – will lead a young squad that is bursting with talent.

The Proteas still have an imposing pace line-up with Kagiso Rabada, Anrich Nortje and Lungi Ngidi leading the way, while Tabraiz Shamsi, the world’s top ranked T20 bowler, joins Keshav Maharaj in the spin attack, the latter having replaced Bavuma as skipper for the SL series.

With Quinton de Kock, Aiden Markram and Heinrich Klaasen also in the squad, the Proteas have enough firepower to cause teams problems, starting with the Aussies in their opening match.

First game: October 23 v Australia

Squad: Temba Bavuma (c), Keshav Maharaj, Quinton de Kock (wk), Bjorn Fortuin, Reeza Hendricks, Heinrich Klaasen, Aiden Markram, David Miller, W Mulder, Lungi Ngidi, Anrich Nortje, Dwaine Pretorius, Kagiso Rabada, Tabraiz Shamsi, Rassie van der Dussen. Reserves: George Linde, Andile Phehlukwayo, Lizaad Williams

Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka have called up 21-year-old mystery spinner Maheesh Theekshana, who recently impressed against South Africa, in a squad that also features spinners Praveen Jayawickrama, Wanindu Hasaranga and Dhananjaya de Silva.

The major omissions from the squad are those of Niroshan Dickwella, Kusal Mendis and Danushka Gunathilaka, who are serving year-long bans for breaking COVID-19 protocols on their tour of England in July.

Kusal Perera returns also from injury to keep wickets.

First game: October 18 v Namibia

Squad: Dasun Shanaka (captain), Kusal Janith Perera, Dinesh Chandimal, Dhananjaya De Silva, Pathum Nissanka, Charith Asalanka, Avishka Fernando, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Chamika Karunaratne, Wanindu Hasaranga, Dushmantha Chameera, Lahiru Kumara, Maheesh Theekshana, Akila Dananjaya, Binura Fernando

West Indies

The Caribbean kings are defending champions in this tournament and boast some of the best T20 players in the world in a star-studded squad.

But it seems West Indies selectors did not 'remember the name' from their famous 2016 tournament, with no place in their squad for Sydney Sixers recruit Carlos Brathwaite.

However, there was a recall for 36-year-old Ravi Rampaul for the first time since 2015, while Roston Chase's impressive CPL has earnt him a maiden call-up.

First game: 23 October v England

Squad: Kieron Pollard (Captain), Nicholas Pooran (Vice Captain), Fabian Allen, Dwayne Bravo, Roston Chase, Andre Fletcher, Chris Gayle, Shimron Hetmyer, Evin Lewis, Obed McCoy, Lendl Simmons, Ravi Rampaul, Andre Russell, Oshane Thomas, Hayden Walsh jr. Reserves: Darren Bravo, Sheldon Cottrell, Jason Holder, Akeal Hosein

2021 Men's T20 World Cup

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How teams are grouped

Round 1

Group A: Sri Lanka, Ireland, Netherlands, Namibia

Group B: Bangladesh, Scotland, Papua New Guinea, Oman

Super 12s

Group 1: England, Australia, South Africa, West Indies, A1, B2

Group 2: India, Pakistan, New Zealand, Afghanistan, B1, A2