With 40 days to the 2026 tournament and no licensing deal announced, India's 1.4 billion people remain locked out of legal broadcast access — joining five Southeast Asian nations in a blackout FIFA has chosen not to fix.


With 38 days to the 2026 tournament, no confirmed broadcast partner exists in India or China. The two most populous nations on earth may go dark on the world's biggest sporting event.

India's T20 squad announcement — Harmanpreet Kaur as captain, Mandhana as vice-captain — frames veteran mentorship as a settling mechanism for new players. The logic is revealing in ways the selectors did not intend.

Twenty-four-year-old Nandni Sharma has earned a maiden call-up to India's T20 World Cup 2026 squad on domestic merit alone — proof that a transparent, state-level selection system can build genuine international depth.