Former West Indies pacer Ian Bishop has made predictions about the upcoming edition of the T20 World Cup 2024, scheduled to be played in the West Indies and the United States of America (USA). Ian Bishop also chose the four semi-finalists for the flagship tournament, which will be played from June 1 to 29.
The ninth edition of the T20 World Cup will feature 55 matches involving 20 nations. The teams that finish in the first two positions of each group will advance to the Super 8 phase. The two best teams in each Super 8 group will qualify for the knockout phase, which will consist of two semi-final matches and the final match.
The much-awaited India-Pakistan match will take place in New York at the Nassau County International Cricket Stadium on Sunday, June 9. The semi-finals are scheduled for June 26 and 27 in Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago respectively, while the final will take place at the Kensington Oval in Barbados on June 29.
Groups for the 2024 T20 World Cup
Group A: India, Pakistan, Ireland, Canada and the United States
Group B: England, Australia, Namibia, Scotland and Oman
Group C: New Zealand, West Indies, Afghanistan, Uganda and Papua New Guinea
Group D: South Africa, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Netherlands and Nepal
Ian Bishop picks 2024 T20 World Cup semi-finalists
In a conversation with ESPNCricinfo, Ian Bishop predicted that West Indies, England, India and Australia would be the top four teams in the T20 World Cup. The 56-year-old claimed that Indian batsman Virat Kohli’s record of most runs in a single season of the tournament will be broken in this year’s ICC tournament.
Virat Kohli has an impressive track record in T20 World Cups. In the 2014 edition, the 35-year-old batsman scored 319 runs at an outstanding average of 106.33 and a strike rate of 129.15 with four fifties. Overall, he is the leading run-scorer in the history of the T20 World Cup, scoring 1,141 runs in 27 matches at an average of 81.50.
Ian Bishop predicts top bowler and top bowler in T20 World Cup 2024
Ian Bishop predicted that Kuldeep Yadav would become the best bowler of the T20 World Cup. The cricketer-turned-commentator overlooked Jasprit Bumrah and Yuzvendra Chahal. Bishop mentioned that Kuldeep would take the most wickets in the tournament among the 20 participating teams.
Ian Bishop overlooked Indian batting stalwarts like Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and Suryakumar Yadav in selecting the tournament’s top scorer. He said England captain Jos Buttler would amass more runs in the event. Butler aims to guide England to their third T20 World Cup victory.
Ian Bishop’s predictions
Player you most expect to see: Jofra Archer
Highest wicket-taker: Kuldeep Yadav
Greatest runner: Jos Buttler
Semifinalist: India, West Indies, Australia, England
Also read: World T20 2024: “It’s a shame” – AB de Villiers on the racial controversy in the South African team