Sri Lanka directly qualifies for T20 World Cup 2028

February 18, 2026 at 7:00 PM

The teams that have progressed to the Super Eights of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 have secured automatic qualification for the next edition of the tournament, to be held in Australia and New Zealand in 2028.

Pakistan’s victory over Namibia on Wednesday completed the Super Eights lineup, with the former champions advancing from Group A alongside India, while Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe (Group B), the West Indies and England (Group C), and South Africa and New Zealand (Group D) have also progressed to the second stage of the 20-team competition.

As co-hosts of the 2028 event, Australia and New Zealand were granted automatic qualification. In accordance with the qualification criteria, all Super Eights teams, including New Zealand along with Australia, now have their places confirmed for the 2028 tournament.

The list of 12 automatic qualifiers will be completed by the next three highest-ranked teams in the ICC Men’s T20I Team Rankings as of 9 March (the day after the scheduled final).

Bangladesh, Afghanistan and Ireland are set to secure those places, with no upcoming international fixtures scheduled that could alter their rankings before the cut-off date.

The remaining eight places in the 20-team field will be determined through a regional qualification pathway, with allocations based on the relative competitive strength of each region.