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Why South Africa are the favourites to lift ICC T20 World Cup 2026; Analysis reveal

Robin

Quinton de Kock celebrating his century (Source: ProteasMenCSA/X)Quinton de Kock celebrating his century (Source: ProteasMenCSA/X)

South Africa, with all the talent, big names, and strong squads, is yet to win an ICC tournament in white-ball cricket. There have been many heartbreaks or many chokes from the Protea side in the past across different ICC events.

Every year, the South African team is rated as one of the top contenders to win the respective ICC event, but they always find a way to fall short of the expectations.

We are not going to talk about what has happened in the past but why the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup 2026 is South Africa’s best shot at breaking the curse and finally winning an ICC white-ball event.

Now or Never: Why 2026 can be South Africa’s T20 WC moment

The ICC T20 World Cup 2026 will start on 7th February 2026, with the final being scheduled on 8th March 2026. India and Sri Lanka will host the event. The Proteas will play three of their four league stage matches at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, and their last game will be played in Delhi.

All the important players from South Africa’s T20I setup have plenty of experience playing in India due to the IPL. The likes of Quinton de Kock, Dewald Brevis, Tristan Stubbs, Marco Jansen, David Miller, Aiden Markram, etc., know the conditions inside out, which will be very beneficial for them.

This is not a game-changing advantage for them, as players from almost every country are well aware of the conditions in India due to the Indian Premier League (IPL) over the years. But it’s not bad to be aware of the conditions either.

Insane depth and quality

Currently, South Africa has insane quality and depth in their T20I setup. The return of Quinton de Kock in international cricket adds more experience to their squad. De Kock, alongside Aiden Markram, Dewald Brevis, Tristan Stubbs, David Miller, and Donovan Ferreira, forms a solid batting unit.

Not to mention the likes of Marco Jansen and Corbin Bosch, who have been brilliant with the bat in the ongoing tour against India. George Linde is also a capable batter, while Kagiso Rabada can also tonk the ball on his day.

Ryan Rickelton is also there alongside Reeza Hendricks, which shows South Africa’s sheer depth and quality with the bat. 9 of the 11 players are capable batters, which just gives them a great upper hand.

Dewlad Brevis during a T20I game (Source: ProteasMenCSA/X)Dewlad Brevis during a T20I game (Source: ProteasMenCSA/X)

And it’s not like that they only have top-order batters batting out of position; the likes of Dewald Brevis, Tristan Stubbs, and David Miller form a solid middle order who can thrash spin as well as pace. Donovan Ferreira’s rise in the last 10-12 months is another positive for them.

In overs 7-16 in T20s (2025):

  • Dewald Brevis: 531 runs at an average of 48.27, striking at 174.10 with 3 fifties.
  • Donovan Ferreira: 351 runs at an average of 58.50, striking at 189.73 with 2 fifties.
  • These numbers show how only Brevis and Ferreira can turn the tables on their own when on song.

Now talking about the bowling, Marco Jansen, Kagiso Rabada, Nandre Burger, Corbin Bosch, and Lungi Ngidi will be the pacers for South Africa. Jansen and Bosch are capable batters without compromising on their bowling quality, while Kagiso Rabada has been a proven performer. Nandre Burger has been very impressive lately, and Ngidi has also bowled well.

In the spin department, South Africa has Keshav Maharaj and George Linde as their lead spinners. Aiden Markram and Donovan Ferreira are other good options. Ferreira, in fact, has been bowling consistently across T20 leagues. While Maharaj is the experienced spinner, South Africa can always play Linde, who adds to the batting and has done a good job in T20s.

All in all, the Protea T20I squad is filled with multi-dimensional players, who are equally capable with both bat and ball. The likes of Marco Jansen, Donovan Ferreira, George Linde, and Corbin Bosch are capable of winning games with both bat and ball.

Potential Challenges

Heinrich Klaasen’s retirement from international cricket is a big blow for South Africa, as his presence would’ve made this side nearly invincible. But the likes of Brevis, Stubbs, and mainly Ferreira will make sure that they don’t miss him.

Another issue is who will bat at 3 for the Proteas? Markram has done a good job while opening the innings, and number 3 will be a higher position for Stubbs and Brevis. One option is to open with Ryan Rickelton and De Kock with Markram at 3, but Rickelton has been average. They can open with Reeza Hendricks, but he too hasn’t been in the best of form, and Rickelton, if he starts performing consistently, is a better option than him.

David Miller too has been quiet for some time now. The veteran is a key batter for his side and can change the course of the game in a matter of few deliveries. So it’s crucial that Miller be in good touch.

And over all this, the middle order is relatively very young, with Brevis, Stubbs, and Ferreira as their key batters. They have plenty of experience playing T20 leagues and the IPL, but the T20 World Cup can be a little different.

South Africa’s full-strength T20I squad should look something like this:

Quinton de Kock, Ryan Rickelton, Aiden Markram (c), Dewald Brevis, David Miller, Tristan Stubbs, Donovan Ferreira, Marco Jansen, George Linde, Corbin Bosch, Kagiso Rabada

Almost everyone in this XI can bat, and they have 4 proper bowling options, with Ferreira and Markram chipping in as the 5th bowler, which isn’t bad.

With such a squad, depth, and quality, the Proteas will be a force to reckon with in the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup, and it will be a shame if they don’t reach at least the finals of the event.