Coaches Predict India Poised to Win 2024 T20 World Cup

The 2024 T20 World Cup is being held in the United States and West Indies from June 1^st to 29th. While usually there is some discussion of the host country having an advantage, that won’t be the case this year. There is hope, however, that the event will give audiences in the US an introduction to the sport and hopefully increase its fanbase in North America. 

While the West Indies are always a potential contender, this World Cup seems to be India’s tournament to win. This isn’t a huge surprise. India have always been a cricket powerhouse and they are the leading force behind the move to T20 cricket.

Twenty20 cricket is a faster, shorter, more intense version of the game. Each match consists of one innings per team and each team bats for only 20 overs. There are also some other important rule changes regarding bowling and fielding, keeping the game competitive. A T20 match lasts for roughly the same amount of time as a football or rugby match, instead of multiple days.

Despite some initial resistance from purists, this version of the sport is more accessible to new audiences.  In the two decades since it was introduced, T20 domestic leagues have been established in 18 countries, and 76 countries have competed on the international level. Now that T20 cricket has become such a popular form of the sport, it’s easy to find a sportsbook that offers T20 cricket odds, including cricket sports betting sites catering to enthusiasts worldwide.

Betting on Twenty20 cricket has been steadily growing in popularity, alongside the new form of the game. There are plenty of legal online sportsbooks operating all over the world that offer odds on T20 matches. Though not all domestic leagues have big enough audiences to be featured on all sportsbooks, the T20 World Cup should be easy to find across any of the leading betting sites worldwide.

It’s always tempting to vote on the side you support, especially in international competitions where patriotism and national bragging rights are on the line. However, that’s not always the smartest policy. Currently, coaches predict that India is poised to win the 2024 T20 World Cup. In this article, we’ll look at what can be learned from the 2022 World and examine why educated opinion is all leaning towards a win for India. 

2022 T20 World Cup

The 2022 T20 World Cup was held in Australia in the fall of that year, after being postponed since 2020. The first round Group stages saw some unexpected upsets and some surprising new talents. While everyone expected India and Pakistan to make it out of their Group, the fact that the West Indies were surpassed by Ireland and Zimbabwe was a shock.

In the Super 12 round, India and Pakistan, again, won their Group and moved on to the knockout stage. England and New Zealand joined them. India were beaten by England in the Semi-Finals and England then went on to win in the Final against Pakistan.

One of the reasons for England’s success was a squad made up of very experienced older players along with a handful of up-and-comers. The weakness in India’s game was that it was unbalanced. You can see this from the disparity between their runs and wickets. Two Indian players were in the top five for the most runs¾Virat Kohli with 296 and Suryakumar Yadav with 239. Meanwhile, they didn’t have a single player break into the top ten of most wickets taken. Addressing this imbalance became a coaching focus. 

India

The Indian cricket world was shaken by the loss to Australia in the final moments of the ICC Cricket World Cup in November 2023. It was an incredibly close final match, with only four runs separating the two teams. Without the impressive final stand of Travis Head and Marnus Labuschagne, India would have easily won.

The high-impact run style of Indian cricket is perfectly suited to T20 cricket. During the recent T20 series between Australia and India, they showed just how effective their playing style was in this format. While the World Cup had been a close finish, India won four of the five matches. That kind of lead over the team that had just beaten them a month previously is very promising for India in the upcoming World Cup.

Another reason that India is being discussed as the favourite is because of their coach, Rahul Dravid. Dravid has been the head coach for India since 2021. His contract was extended to cover the 2024 World Cup and his consistency and experience are exactly what the team need.

Dravid remains Test cricket’s fourth-highest run scorer and either set or broke a number of other records during his playing career. His batting prowess is perfect for his team’s playing style. In addition, prior to becoming the head coach for India, Dravid was the head of the National Cricket Academy and head coach of the Under-19 team. This gives him great insight into the squad’s younger players and how to shape the current squad to be ready for the incoming talent in the coming years.