Team India look to be in belligerent form ahead of the T20 World Cup 2026 and will enter the tournament as a formidable contender to retain their title.

In the lead up to the marquee event, the Suryakumar Yadav-led side is currently hosting New Zealand in a five-T20I series. The Men in Blue have already gained an unassailable lead in the series after winning first three matches.

While India won the series opener by 48 runs, they chased down 209 and 154 in 15.2 and 10 overs during the second and third T20Is to emerge victorious by seven wickets and eight wickets respectively.

Moreover, India haven’t lost a T20I series under Suryakumar-Gautam Gambhir regime. Despite the unprecedented dominance, former head coach Rahul Dravid offered a word of caution for the defending champions.

Dravid, who was at the helm of affairs when India clinched the T20 World Cup title in 2024, reminded the current team that one bad match is all it takes to bring a spotless campaign to a screeching halt.

Having seen the Indian team losing the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023 final to Australia after enjoying an unbeaten run till the semis, Dravid totally understands the pain of one bad day in the office.

“India is playing T20 cricket at a different level than most teams. They have had an 80% success rate over the last few years, which is amazing given the format's many ups and downs. They clearly start as favourites, and they will make it to the semi-finals, but as I have learned to my bitter disappointment, it’s about the better team on the day. Anybody can play a good knock and upset you,” Dravid said at a special event celebrating ‘The Rise of the Hitman’ by author R. Kaushik.

Dravid was effusive in praise of Rohit Sharma, who led from the front that took India to a podium finish in the last T20 World Cup.

“There was a feeling that we were slightly behind in white-ball cricket and needed to push the envelope a little more. Run rates were going up, risk-taking was increasing, and we needed to adapt to that reality,” Dravid added.

“What was brilliant was that Rohit took the lead immediately. He took responsibility for setting the tempo himself, rather than asking others to do it. When your leader stands up and says, ‘I will do this, even if it comes at the cost of my average or my personal numbers,’ it becomes much easier to pass that message through the team.

“I thought Rohit managed the transition into leadership really well. The team never felt that he had changed, and that is a rare and important quality in a leader,” he further remarked.

India will begin their T20 World Cup 2026 campaign against the USA on February 7 at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.