Looking ahead to 2026: Can the big stars, from India’s cricket teams to Lionel Messi and D Gukesh, defend their crowns?

India have a golden opportunity in their hands to match what West Indies did in the 1970s, and Australia did in the 2000s; Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi will be giving what could be their final push for a FIFA World Cup

In the last three men’s ICC events, India have been head and shoulders above the chasing pack. While they won two tournaments, staying unbeaten, their only loss in the 2023 home World Cup came in the final. In a month, they will gear up for another World Cup at home, this one in the T20 format. No team has ever before defended the title.

While it speaks about the magnitude of the challenge, India also has a chance to do what no Indian side has done before. For a team that is spoken about as the best, they haven’t won two successive World Cups. With a dominant squad on paper, India have a golden opportunity in their hands to match what West Indies did in the 1970s, and Australia did in the 2000s. Getting to do it at home would make it all the more special.

Even in the immediate aftermath of India finally breaking the barrier to win the ICC Women’s World Cup, Harmanpreet Kaur’s perspective didn’t leave her. She said this should just be the start, not a one-off: India must make this a habit now.

The 2026 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup starting in England from 12 June, would be the first opportunity to show the world if India can convert the magical triumph in Navi Mumbai into the foundation of a cricketing dynasty. It gives India the perfect chance, in conditions where they actually have fared well recently, to go from strength to strength. But mind you, after being dethroned from both their thrones in white-ball cricket. Australia would be gunning for it just as hard, if not more.

Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo have cast football in their image this century, enriching and embellishing the sport. Their World Cup journey would conclude next year. Ronaldo is 40, Messi is 38. There wouldn’t be the mind and legs of another campaign. The Argentine has already realised his dream of lifting the World Cup in Qatar. The dream has remained elusive for Ronaldo. The 2026 edition would be his last shot.

Their intertwined destinies could twine for one last time. Portugal and Argentina could potentially meet in the quarterfinals in Kansas, provided they top their group and win the knockouts. One of the two great careers could end in tears. It would be both cruel and fitting, but an irresistible watch.

If you don’t want Novak Djokovic to win his record 25th Slam in 2026, you can’t be a true tennis fan. But can the 38-year-old break the Sinner-Alcaraz duopoly? If you doubt the Serb you can’t be a true tennis fan. After a Slam-less year, Djokovic is re-constructing his team to further push his already stretched aging body.

Joining it is Dr. Mark Kovacs, a new-age holistic sports coach whose website calls him a “performance expert in the area of optimising human performance through the application of cutting edge, evidence-based information”. Djokovic’s biggest challenge is to play 7 best-of-five Slam matches. So if modern science can help his body last the distance, the mind can do the rest. The Serb has hinted that the Australian Open could be his last Slam. If you are a true fan, you know those are just mind games.

For the past year, 19-year-old Gukesh has spent his time on the world champion’s throne with a target on his back. There has been little to celebrate, even as Gukesh has tried to experiment and wander out of his comfort zone of classical tournaments. But come 2026, and the world of chess (and Gukesh too) will narrow their focus on the world championship, likely to be held in the November-December window. The Candidates tournament from March 28 to April 16 will throw up a challenger. And while Gukesh has looked vulnerable all year, beating the boy who is one of the most thorough preparers in classical chess over a 14-game world championship will not be easy for anyone.

Mondo Duplantis, the pole-vault superstar with 14 world records to his name, gives a clue when he is in the mood to raise the bar further. Out of his kit bag he pulls out a special pair of spikes, intimidatingly called the ‘claw’, with one spike protruding from the front for extra grip. At this year’s World Championships final in Tokyo, Duplantis wore the spikes when he successfully soared over 6.30 metres, the fourth time he rewrote his own world record in 2025..

A reason he does not use the ‘claw’ for every jump is because he could nick himself when he twists and turns through the air, though the pointed edge has been rounded to prevent an untoward incident.

Duplantis, 26, has set a target of 6.40 metres for himself. With an updated version of the ‘claw’ coming out for this season combined with phenomenal talent there’s no saying how high Duplantis can go.