T20 World Cup 2021: Dinesh Karthik, Darren Sammy, Isa Guha predict finalists

On Tuesday, the International Cricket Council (ICC) released the schedule and fixtures for the 2018 T20 World Cup in the United Arab Emirates. As the tournament draws nearer, Indian batsman Dinesh Karthik, former women's cricketer Isa Guha, and ex-Windies captain Darren Sammy were seen picking their best squads for the tournament. While Karthik chose India and Pakistan from Group 2 to qualify for the final, Sammy believes England and West Indies would advance to the playoffs from Group 1. 

When asked about their favourites to win the 2021 T20 World Cup, both Karthik and Sammy picked their respective countries. Meanwhile, Isa Guha picked England to qualify for the final alongside West Indies. The former English cricketer said she would like to see England lift the T20 World Cup in the UAE this year. "That's a no brainer for me, West Indies all the way," Sammy said when asked about his favourite team to win this year's World Cup. 

"I am not gonna go all the way to say who's gonna win but I will tell you this, I would love to see India and West Indies final. My second favourite team after India would definitely be West Indies only for the flare of cricket that they play. I think in this format, they love it, it brings out the best in them and I would love to see West Indies in the final. Whether I want them to win it that will depend on the opponent of the day but for the moment I will stick with the India-West Indies final," Karthik said. 

T20 World Cup 2021

The tournament will begin with the Round 1 Group B encounter between hosts Oman and Papua New Guinea on October 17, with Scotland and Bangladesh, the other teams in Group B, clashing in the evening match on the same day. The top two teams in each group will proceed to the Super 12 stage of the tournament, beginning on October 23.
 
The groups for the T20 World Cup event have already been announced. Eight teams will contest the first round for a spot in the Super 12 – Ireland, Netherlands, and Namibia, and Sri Lanka will form Group A, while Group B consists of Oman, PNG, Scotland, and Bangladesh. The top two teams from each group will move to the second round of the event. 

In Group 1 of Super 12, West Indies England, Australia and South Africa will be joined by the winner of Group A and runner-up of Group B from Round 1. Group 2 will comprise India and Pakistan, New Zealand and Afghanistan, and the winner of Group B and runner-up of Group A from Round 1.

Image: IsaGuha/DineshKarthik/DarrenSammy/Insta