2025–26 International League T20
| Dates | 2 December 2025 – 4 January 2026 |
|---|---|
| Administrator | Emirates Cricket Board |
| Cricket format | Twenty20 |
| Tournament format(s) | Double round-robin and Playoffs |
| Participants | 6 |
| Matches | 34 |
| Official website | www |
The 2025–26 International League T20, also known as DP World ILT20 2025–26 for sponsorship reasons, is the fourth season of the International League T20, a professional Twenty20 cricket league in the United Arab Emirates, organised by the Emirates Cricket Board. The tournament was started on 2 December 2025 and the final will be held on 4 January 2026.[1][2][3] Dubai Capitals are the defending champions.[4]
Background
The fourth season of the International League T20 (ILT20) will begin on 2 December 2025, UAE National Day – which is one of the most important days on the UAE calendar, earlier than usual to avoid a clash with the 2026 Men's T20 World Cup in February. The tournament will conclude on 4 January 2026.[5][6] The revised schedule also helps reduce overlap with other T20 leagues like SA20, Big Bash League, and BPL.
Player auction
The teams had a purse of USD 2 million, out of which USD 1.2 million could be used for retention and direct signings. USD 800,000 and any leftover amount from retention and direct signings can be used in auction, with a minimum of USD 1.5 million needed to be spend.
Each franchise is allowed to build a squad of 19 to 21 players, excluding wildcard picks. Squad composition rules require a minimum of 11 players from ICC Full Member nations, four from the UAE, one each from Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, and two from other Associate Member countries. Teams are also permitted to sign up to two wildcard players after the auction, with a separate budget of USD 250,000 for such additions.
The player auction was held in Jumeirah, Dubai on 1 October 2025.[7] Zee Entertainment (Zee5) has been awarded as the Global Broadcast Partner for the 2025-26 ILT20 - International League T20.[8]
Squads
Retained players were announced on 7 July 2025.[9][10]
The squads of all teams are as below:[11]
Venues
| United Arab Emirates | ||
|---|---|---|
| Dubai | Sharjah | Abu Dhabi |
| Dubai International Cricket Stadium | Sharjah Cricket Stadium | Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium |
| Capacity: 25,000 | Capacity: 16,000 | Capacity: 20,000 |
Teams and standings
Points table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | NR | Pts | NRR | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Desert Vipers | 9 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 14 | 0.446 | Advance to Qualifier 1 |
| 2 | MI Emirates | 8 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 10 | 0.456 | |
| 3 | Dubai Capitals | 8 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 8 | 0.836 | Advance to Eliminator |
| 4 | Gulf Giants | 8 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 6 | 0.018 | |
| 5 | Abu Dhabi Knight Riders | 9 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 6 | −0.805 | |
| 6 | Sharjah Warriorz | 8 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 6 | −0.910 |
Updated to match(es) played on 22 December 2026. Source: ESPNcricinfo
Match summary
| Team | Group matches | Playoffs | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | Q1/E | Q2 | F | |
| Abu Dhabi Knight Riders | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 6 | ? | |||
| Desert Vipers | 2 | 4 | 6 | 8 | 10 | 12 | 12 | 14 | 14 | ? | |||
| Dubai Capitals | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 8 | ? | ? | |||
| Gulf Giants | 2 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | ? | ? | |||
| MI Emirates | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 8 | 10 | ? | ? | |||
| Sharjah Warriorz | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 6 | ? | ? | |||
| Win | Loss | No result |
- Note: The total points at the end of each group match are listed.
- Note: Click on the points (group matches) or W/L (playoffs) to see the match summary.
| Visitor team → | ADKR | DV | DC | GG | MIE | SW |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home team ↓ | ||||||
| Abu Dhabi Knight Riders | Abu Dhabi 1 run | Dubai 9 runs | Abu Dhabi 4 wickets | Emirates 7 wickets | Sharjah 4 wickets | |
| Desert Vipers | Vipers 2 wickets | Vipers 5 wickets | Vipers Super Over | Emirates 4 wickets | Vipers 4 wickets | |
| Dubai Capitals | Dubai 83 runs | Vipers 4 wickets | Giants 4 wickets | Emirates 7 runs | Match 27 | |
| Gulf Giants | Match 30 | Vipers 8 wickets | Dubai 6 wickets | Giants 6 wickets | Giants 6 wickets | |
| MI Emirates | Emirates 35 runs | Vipers 1 run | Match 29 | Match 26 | Sharjah 6 runs | |
| Sharjah Warriorz | Abu Dhabi 39 runs | Match 28 | Dubai 63 runs | Sharjah 11 runs | Emirates 4 runs |
| Home team won | Visitor team won |
- Note: Results listed are according to the home (horizontal) and visitor (vertical) teams.
- Note: Click on a result to see a summary of the match.
League stage
Dubai Capitals
150/8 (20 overs) |
v
|
Desert Vipers
151/6 (19 overs) |
- Desert Vipers won the toss and elected to field.
Abu Dhabi Knight Riders
233/4 (20 overs) |
v
|
Sharjah Warriorz
194/9 (20 overs) |
- Sharjah Warriorz won the toss and elected to field.
- Raees Ahmed (Sharjah Warriorz) and Ajay Kumar (Abu Dhabi Knight Riders) both made their T20 debuts.
MI Emirates
163/6 (20 overs) |
v
|
Gulf Giants
164/4 (14.4 overs) |
- Gulf Giants won the toss and elected to field.
- Haider Razzaq (Gulf Giants) made his T20 debut.
Abu Dhabi Knight Riders
171/6 (20 overs) |
v
|
Desert Vipers
175/8 (19.3 overs) |
Shimron Hetmyer 48 (25)
Ajay Kumar 3/21 (4 overs) |
- Desert Vipers won the toss and elected to field.
Dubai Capitals
160/6 (20 overs) |
v
|
Gulf Giants
161/6 (18.5 overs) |
- Gulf Giants won the toss and elected to field.
MI Emirates
185/8 (20 overs) |
v
|
Sharjah Warriorz
181/7 (20 overs) |
- Sharjah Warriorz won the toss and elected to field.
- Wasim Akram (Sharjah Warriorz) made his T20 debut.
- Sikandar Raza (Sharjah Warriorz) hit his 300th six in T20s.
Dubai Capitals
186/4 (20 overs) |
v
|
Abu Dhabi Knight Riders
103 (15.3 overs) |
- Abu Dhabi Knight Riders won the toss and elected to field.
Gulf Giants
179/5 (20 overs) |
v
|
Desert Vipers
179/9 (20 overs) |
Pathum Nissanka 56 (29)
Khuzaima Tanveer 2/23 (4 overs) |
- Desert Vipers won the toss and elected to field.
- Super Over: Desert Vipers 13/1, Gulf Giants 9/0.
Desert Vipers
159/4 (20 overs) |
v
|
MI Emirates
158/9 (20 overs) |
- MI Emirates won the toss and elected to field.
Sharjah Warriorz
157/6 (20 overs) |
v
|
Gulf Giants
158/4 (19.4 overs) |
- Gulf Giants won the toss and elected to field.
Abu Dhabi Knight Riders
122 (19.3 overs) |
v
|
MI Emirates
123/3 (13.5 overs) |
- MI Emirates won the toss and elected to field.
Gulf Giants
157/7 (20 overs) |
v
|
Desert Vipers
158/2 (16.5 overs) |
- Desert Vipers won the toss and elected to field.
Dubai Capitals
196/5 (20 overs) |
v
|
Abu Dhabi Knight Riders
187/8 (20 overs) |
- Abu Dhabi Knight Riders won the toss and elected to field.
Sharjah Warriorz
174/3 (20 overs) |
v
|
MI Emirates
168/5 (20 overs) |
- MI Emirates won the toss and elected to field.
- Matheesha Pathirana (Sharjah Warriorz) played his 100th T20 match.
Dubai Capitals
166/4 (20 overs) |
v
|
Desert Vipers
171/5 (19.4 overs) |
- Desert Vipers won the toss and elected to field.
- As a result, Desert Vipers qualified for the playoffs.
Sharjah Warriorz
174/6 (20 overs) |
v
|
Gulf Giants
163/9 (20 overs) |
- Gulf Giants won the toss and elected to field.
Abu Dhabi Knight Riders
181/5 (20 overs) |
v
|
Desert Vipers
180/6 (20 overs) |
- Desert Vipers won the toss and elected to field.
MI Emirates
137/8 (20 overs) |
v
|
Dubai Capitals
130 (20 overs) |
- Dubai Capitals won the toss and elected to field.
Gulf Giants
165/7 (20 overs) |
v
|
Abu Dhabi Knight Riders
167/6 (19.2 overs) |
- Abu Dhabi Knight Riders won the toss and elected to field.
Dubai Capitals
180/6 (20 overs) |
v
|
Sharjah Warriorz
117 (17 overs) |
- Sharjah Warriorz won the toss and elected to field.
Abu Dhabi Knight Riders
187/4 (20 overs) |
v
|
MI Emirates
152 (20 overs) |
- Abu Dhabi Knight Riders won the toss and elected to field.
Sharjah Warriorz
90 (17.5 overs) |
v
|
Desert Vipers
91/6 (13.5 overs) |
- Sharjah Warriorz won the toss and elected to bat.
Gulf Giants
156 (19.5 overs) |
v
|
Dubai Capitals
162/4 (19.2 overs) |
- Dubai Capitals won the toss and elected to field.
Desert Vipers
124/7 (20 overs) |
v
|
MI Emirates
128/6 (17.3 overs) |
- MI Emirates won the toss and elected to field.
Abu Dhabi Knight Riders
134/9 (20 overs) |
v
|
Sharjah Warriorz
135/6 (20 overs) |
- Abu Dhabi Knight Riders won the toss and elected to bat.
Play-offs
Bracket
| Qualifier 1 | Qualifier 2 | Final | |||||||||||
| 30 December 2025 — Abu Dhabi | 4 January 2026 — Dubai | ||||||||||||
| 1 | Desert Vipers | Q1W | Winner of Qualifier 1 | ||||||||||
| 2 | 2nd placed team | 2 January 2026 — Sharjah | Q2W | Winner of Qualifier 2 | |||||||||
| Q1L | Loser of Qualifier 1 | ||||||||||||
| Eliminator | EW | Winner of Eliminator | |||||||||||
| 1 January 2026 — Dubai | |||||||||||||
| 3 | 3rd placed team | ||||||||||||
| 4 | 4th placed team | ||||||||||||
Qualifier 1
Eliminator
Qualifier 2
Final
Statistics
Most runs
| Runs | Player | Team | Inns. | SR | HS | Avg. | 50/100 | 4's | 6's |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 260 | Sam Curran | Desert Vipers | 9 | 128.71 | 67* | 37.14 | 2/0 | 17 | 10 |
| 252 | Max Holden | Desert Vipers | 9 | 122.33 | 64* | 31.50 | 2/0 | 30 | 0 |
| 246 | Jonny Bairstow | MI Emirates | 8 | 148.19 | 67 | 35.14 | 1/0 | 28 | 9 |
| 243 | Pathum Nissanka | Gulf Giants | 6 | 186.92 | 81 | 40.50 | 3/0 | 20 | 15 |
| Rovman Powell | Dubai Capitals | 8 | 158.82 | 96* | 48.60 | 1/0 | 16 | 13 | |
| Source: ESPNcricinfo | Last Updated: 21 December 2025 | |||||||||
Most wickets
| Wickets | Player | Team | Inns. | Econ. | BBI | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15 | Waqar Salamkheil | Dubai Capitals | 8 | 7.49 | 4/29 | ||||
| 14 | Mustafizur Rahman | Dubai Capitals | 7 | 8.29 | 3/34 | ||||
| 13 | Khuzaima Tanveer | Desert Vipers | 8 | 7.58 | 4/10 | ||||
| 12 | Ajay Kumar | Abu Dhabi Knight Riders | 8 | 8.00 | 3/21 | ||||
| 11 | Noor Ahmad | Desert Vipers | 8 | 7.61 | 2/18 | ||||
| David Payne | Desert Vipers | 6 | 7.87 | 4/29 | |||||
| Azmatullah Omarzai | Gulf Giants | 5 | 9.05 | 4/32 | |||||
| Source: ESPNcricinfo | Last Updated: 21 December 2025 | |||||||||
Notes
- ^ a b Ritesh Grandhi got ruled out and he was replaced by Mustafizur Rahman.
- ^ a b Tymal Mills got ruled out and he was replaced by Dushmantha Chameera.
- ^ a b Blessing Muzarabani got ruled out due to injury, and he was replaced by Nuwan Thushara.
- ^ a b Ramon Simmonds got ruled out due to injury, and he was replaced by Pathum Nissanka.
- ^ a b Jordan Thompson got ruled out due to injury, and he was replaced by Rashid Khan.[12]
- ^ a b Nuwan Thushara got ruled out due to national duty, and he was replaced by Ali Khan.
- ^ a b Pathum Nissanka got ruled out due to national duty, and he was replaced by Jordan Clark.
References
- ^ "ILT20 moves its schedule for T20 World Cup". BBC Sport. Retrieved 1 August 2025.
- ^ "ILT20 organizers advance 2026 season to avoid T20 World Cup clash". Cricbuzz. Retrieved 25 July 2025.
- ^ "ILT20 to move to December-January window for 2025-26 season". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 14 May 2025.
- ^ "Powell, Raza fire Dubai Capitals to maiden ILT20 title". Cricbuzz. Retrieved 9 February 2025.
- ^ "DP World International League T20 Season 4 to begin with blockbuster clash between defending champions Dubai Capitals and Desert Vipers". ilt20.ae. Retrieved 30 September 2025.
- ^ "DP World International League T20 Season 4 to commence on UAE National Day, 2 December 2025". www.ilt20.ae. 2025-05-14. Retrieved 2025-10-02.
- ^ "ILT20 auction details". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 30 September 2025.
- ^ "ILT20 Broadcast Partners & Streaming Detail". 23 September 2025.
- ^ "ILT20: Powell, Ghazanfar retained; Hales, Livingstone among new signings". ESPNcricinfo.
- ^ "Phil Salt and Andre Russell among star-studded line-up for DP World ILT20 Season 4". MSN.
- ^ "International League T20 2025-26 all teams' squads". Cricbuzz.
- ^ "Rashid Khan replaces Jordan Thompson in MI Emirates squad". ESPN Cricinfo. 4 December 2025. Retrieved 5 December 2025.