India will open their T20 World Cup 2026 campaign on February 7 against the USA.
Team India will enter the T20 World Cup 2026 as a formidable contender to retain their title. The Men in Blue haven’t lost a T20I series under Suryakumar-Gautam Gambhir regime, boasting an impressive win-loss record of 32-5.
Despite the unprecedented dominance, former skipper Rohit Sharma pointed out India's biggest challenge heading into the T20 World Cup.
According to Rohit, the team management will be uncertain when it comes to fielding two specialist spinners in Kuldeep Yadav and Varun Chakravarthy, or going with the latter alone for the entire tournament.
India also have spin all-rounders, Axar Patel and Washington Sundar, in their ranks. Rohit, however, stressed that the tournament’s timing — during the transition from winter to spring — will bring heavy dew into play during evening matches.
“The biggest challenge for captain Suryakumar Yadav and coach Gautam Gambhir will be how to play both Kuldeep Yadav and Varun Chakaravarthy together. If you want that combination, you can only do it if you play with two seamers, which is a big challenge,” Rohit said on JioHotstar.
“Looking at conditions in India, like in this New Zealand series, there is a lot of dew. In February and March, dew will be heavy across most parts as winter ends. Even in Mumbai, which doesn’t get cold, there’s still dew. I’d say 90-95% of grounds in India have dew. That’s the challenge,” he added.
“What do the coach and captain think? Are they comfortable with three spinners? Then they can play spin, but there’s no fixed rule. You have to drop a pacer, which may not be right. It depends on the thinking of the team leadership,” he further remarked.
India will begin their T20 World Cup title defence on February 7 against the USA at the Wankhede Stadium. They have been drawn in Group A along with the USA, Pakistan, the Netherlands and Namibia.