ICC T20 World Cup 2026: 5 Bowlers to watch out for in the tournament

The ICC T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka will put bowlers under intense pressure due to the small boundaries, and power-packed batting lineups force bowlers to be inventive, accurate and tactically smart. There is a famous saying in the cricketing circle that batters win you matches, whereas bowlers win you tournaments. Here are five bowlers who can tilt the tournament on their own.

1. Varun Chakravarthy

Varun Chakravarthy’s value in T20s is obvious. He is a mystery wrist-spin that hides the seam and varies pace and flight to force errors. He has built a strong T20 résumé by turning tight middle overs into wicket-taking opportunities, and his experience gives him the craft to bowl through pressure phases. 

In conditions that favour finger-spinners, Varun becomes a containment option. In pitches that grip, he becomes a strike bowler. Teams that can use him in short, attacking bursts and set attacking fields often find batters rushing their shots and gifting wickets. He has been occupying the top position in T20I bowling rankings for a long time now, which speaks of his dominance.

2. Josh Hazlewood

Josh Hazlewood is a different, but equally important, proposition. He is a metronomic new-ball seamer whose control and ability to hit the right lengths make him a reliable wicket-taker on surfaces that offer carry. 

Hazlewood’s 2025 form, including a strong IPL campaign where his accuracy produced regular returns, showed how he can stifle big hitters by removing the width and swinging the new ball at pace. In tournament cricket, his best value is in powerplays and early overs, where a tidy Hazlewood spell forces oppositions to rebuild around cautious batting.

3. Jacob Duffy

Jacob Duffy’s rise to prominence in 2025 was built on consistency and volume. The New Zealand seamer topped domestic and international wicket charts through a year of heavy usage, producing a string of incisive spells that combined seam movement, control and intelligent length. 

Duffy’s knack for hitting stumps and forcing edges, not just raw pace, makes him especially dangerous in T20s when opponents try to exploit pace changes. For New Zealand, he’s become the dependable strike option who can operate in powerplay and middle overs with equal effectiveness.

4. Marco Jansen

Marco Jansen offers the kind of physical presence that unsettles batters in short formats. He is a tall, left-arm quick who is able to generate awkward bounce and pace off the pitch. Jansen’s 2025 outings in international and franchise showed he can both take early wickets and bowl heavy mid-innings spells that change the match’s momentum. 

His height allows deliveries to skid and rear unusually. On pitches with any carry or uneven bounce, Jansen becomes a nightmare for batters who rely on timing rather than power. He’s a genuine two-phase threat in new-ball bite and middle-overs intimidation.

5. Jasprit Bumrah

Jasprit Bumrah remains the bowler every captain wants in crunch T20 moments. Bumrah’s mastery of the yorker, his disguises at slower speeds and his ability to read a batter’s intent have made him a consistent wicket-taker and death-overs specialist. 

He crossed major career milestones in 2025 and kept delivering under pressure for India and franchises, proving that skill and variation trump pure speed in the final overs. In a World Cup where chases are decided by a single over, Bumrah’s cool execution and unerring accuracy make him indispensable.

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