Not Abhishek Sharma! Yuzvendra Chahal announces his choice for T20 World Cup 2026 Player of the Tournament

In a series of major strategic revelations leading up to the T20 World Cup 2026experienced leg spinner Yuzvendra Chahal has sparked conversations by overlooking India’s biggest batting stars Abhishek Sharma for the tournament’s ultimate individual honor. With the big event kicking off on February 7, 2026, Chahal’s predictions offer a unique insight into the defending champions’ tactical expectations.

Yuzvendra Chahal predicts the Player of the Tournament at the 2026 T20 World Cup

In an exclusive video shared on January 31, Chahal was officially named the ace pacer jasprit bumrah as his predicted Player of the Tournament. By choosing Bumrah, Chahal pointedly overlooked both T20I captains Suryakumar Yadav and explosive young opener Abhishek for the MVP title. Chahal’s selection is a nod to Bumrah’s historic 2024 campaign where he took 15 wickets at an extraordinary economy of 4.17 to lead India to glory. The 35-year-old leg-spinner believes Bumrah’s ‘unplayable’ nature on the sub-continental circuits of India and Sri Lanka will once again be the deciding factor in India’s title defense.

#YuzvendraChahal ki prediction! 💡

If #TeamIndia are on their way to beat history, comment on your predictions for this World Cup! 👀

ICC Men #T20World Cup 2026 👉 #INDvUSA | SAT 7 FEB, 6pm pic.twitter.com/CPF3kOXHHJ

— Star Sports (@StarSportsIndia) January 31, 2026

READ also: Fans left unimpressed as Anirudh Ravichander’s T20 World Cup 2026 ‘Feel the Thrill’ song attracted trolls

Chahal’s predictions for best batsman and highest total in T20 World Cup 2026

Despite overlooking him for the Player of the Tournament award, Chahal showed immense faith in Abhishek and picked him as the best batsman of the competition. He further backed the young southpaw to lead the charts with six hits, signaling high expectations for a breakthrough on the world stage. Furthermore, Chahal made a bold tactical prediction for the tournament’s scoring trends, setting 240 as likely the highest team total, suggesting he expects some extremely high-scoring encounters despite the spin-friendly conditions of the host nations.

Chahal also named the India-Pakistan match scheduled for Sunday, February 15 in Colombo, as the match he is most looking forward to. This reflects the sentiment of the wider cricket world, especially after the recent announcement of Richard Illingworth And Kumar Dharmasena as an on-field referee for that specific match. As the ‘rock star’ of Indian music, Anirudh Ravichanderfacing backlash over the official anthem ‘Feel the Thrill’, Chahal’s grounded cricket analysis has provided a much-needed focus on the battles ahead.

READ also: PAK vs AUS: Salman Ali Agha unveils Pakistan’s third batsman for 2026 T20 World Cup