Every T20 World Cup winner
| Year | Host | Winner | Runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | South Africa | India | Pakistan |
| 2009 | England | Pakistan | Sri Lanka |
| 2010 | West Indies | England | Australia |
| 2012 | Sri Lanka | West Indies | Sri Lanka |
| 2014 | Bangladesh | Sri Lanka | India |
| 2016 | India | West Indies | England |
| 2021 | UAE/Oman | Australia | New Zealand |
| 2022 | Australia | England | Pakistan |
| 2024 | USA/West Indies | India | South Africa |
| 2026 | India/Sri Lanka | India | New Zealand |
Titles by team
| Team | Titles |
|---|---|
| West Indies | 2 (2012, 2016) |
| England | 2 (2010, 2022) |
| India | 3 (2007, 2024, 2026) |
| Pakistan | 1 (2009) |
| Sri Lanka | 1 (2014) |
| Australia | 1 (2021) |
Every final, briefly
2007 — India beat Pakistan by 5 runs (Johannesburg). The one that launched the format. A last-over thriller: Pakistan needed 13 off 6 with one wicket left, Misbah scooped Joginder Sharma, Sreesanth took the catch. Dhoni's young side became accidental pioneers.
2009 — Pakistan beat Sri Lanka by 8 wickets (Lord's). Younis Khan's side peaked at exactly the right time, and Shahid Afridi — player of the match in the semi-final and the final — dragged Pakistan over the line chasing 139. Pakistan's only T20 world title. Full story: how Pakistan won it.
2010 — England beat Australia by 7 wickets (Bridgetown). England's first ICC world title in any format. Kieswetter's 63 set up the chase of 148, and Pietersen was player of the tournament. The "England can't win tournaments" talk died here.
2012 — West Indies beat Sri Lanka by 36 runs (Colombo). Marlon Samuels' 78 dragged West Indies to 137, which somehow proved enough in front of a stunned home crowd. Gayle's tournament, Samuels' final.
2014 — Sri Lanka beat India by 6 wickets (Dhaka). Sangakkara's unbeaten 52 in his T20I farewell chased down 131, after India's batsmen froze. Kohli was player of the tournament but ended on the losing side — T20 can be cruel like that.
2016 — West Indies beat England by 4 wickets (Kolkata). 19 needed off the last over; Brathwaite hit Stokes for four straight sixes. "Remember the name" — Ian Bishop on commentary, and everyone did. West Indies' second title.
2021 — Australia beat New Zealand by 8 wickets (Dubai). The one title Australia didn't have. Warner's 53 and Marsh's unbeaten 77 chased 173 with room to spare. Completed the set for the men in yellow.
2022 — England beat Pakistan by 5 wickets (Melbourne). Stokes' unbeaten 52* guided a tricky chase of 138 at a heaving MCG. Pakistan's bowlers had kept them in it, but Shaheen Afridi's injury mid-final turned the game — still the great what-if.
2024 — India beat South Africa by 7 runs (Bridgetown). Kohli's 76 in his T20I farewell, then Bumrah and Hardik defending the indefensible — South Africa needed 30 off 30 with six wickets in hand and lost. India's second title, 17 years after the first.
2026 — India beat New Zealand by 96 runs (Ahmedabad). A demolition in the final — India's third title, and the first time any team has defended the T20 World Cup.
Tournament records
| Record | Holder | Detail |
|---|---|---|
| Most titles | India | 3 (2007, 2024, 2026) |
| Only team to defend the title | India | 2024 → 2026 |
| Biggest win in a final (runs) | India | 96 runs vs New Zealand, 2026 |
| Biggest win in a final (wickets) | Pakistan / Australia | 8 wickets (2009, 2021) |
| Most finals played | Pakistan / India / England | 3 each (Pak: 2007, 2009, 2022) |
Finals by margin
| Year | Winner | Margin | Runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | India | 5 runs | Pakistan |
| 2009 | Pakistan | 8 wickets | Sri Lanka |
| 2010 | England | 7 wickets | Australia |
| 2012 | West Indies | 36 runs | Sri Lanka |
| 2014 | Sri Lanka | 6 wickets | India |
| 2016 | West Indies | 4 wickets | England |
| 2021 | Australia | 8 wickets | New Zealand |
| 2022 | England | 5 wickets | Pakistan |
| 2024 | India | 7 runs | South Africa |
| 2026 | India | 96 runs | New Zealand |
Pakistan's story
Three finals (2007, 2009, 2022), one title. The 2009 win at Lord's — Afridi's all-round final vs Sri Lanka — remains the high point. The 2022 final loss to England at the MCG still hurts.
Favourite T20 World Cup memory: 2009, Lord's, Afridi's fifty in the final. The whole tournament felt like Pakistan playing with house money after the early chaos.
The 2016 semi-final still annoys me too — not ours to win, but watching Brathwaite do that to Stokes live was the kind of thing that reminds you why this format exists.
Pakistan's current T20 setup and who's leading it: Pakistan's T20 captain.
