Team India look primed for title defence, but a few fault lines persist

India finished their final assignment ahead of the T20 World Cup 2026 in emphatic fashion, beating New Zealand 4-1 in the five-match T20I series as they sealed a 46-run victory in the fifth match in Thiruvananthapuram. 

The Men in Blue once again had an unconquerable, domineering force over the Kiwis as they flexed their batting muscles and skittled them with their well-rounded bowling attack.

The Asian Giants have been the team to beat in world cricket since their success at the last T20 World Cup in 2024, having won nine successive series, including the Asia Cup 2025. Since July 2024, the Men in Blue have won 31 out of 41 matches and lost just six, while two each have ended in no result and a tie.

Given India’s winning juggernaut, they look primed to defend their T20 World Cup crown on home soil and will instill fear in the remaining teams even before they face them. With the T20 World Cup beginning in a week, here’s a look at India’s positives heading into the World Cup:

A firing top order

India’s firepower in the batting department starts from the top itself with Abhishek Sharma redefining T20I batting standards with his belligerent strokeplay. The southpaw is ruling both the T20I run-scoring charts and rankings, and if India are to defend their World Cup crown, Abhishek needs to play a pivotal role in their campaign.

While Abhishek was already proving too much for the opponents, India have found his carbon copy in Ishan Kishan, who has made a remarkable comeback to team India after over two years.

Kishan made a sensational comeback in the New Zealand series, scoring 215 runs from four innings, including fiery knocks of 76 (32) and 103 (43). With Kishan also firing all cylinders, the southpaw has added more firepower to an already formidable batting unit.

Adding to Abhishek and Kishan’s batting strength is Suryakumar Yadav’s return to form, which couldn’t have come at a better time for the Men in Blue, as they desperately needed their captain to fire ahead of the T20 World Cup. The India skipper was at his vintage best in the New Zealand series as he won the Player of the Series award for scoring 242 runs from five innings at an average of 80.66 with three half-centuries.

The invaluable all-rounders

While the top order is in prolific form, India also have fierce strikers of the ball in the middle and lower order with Shivam Dube, Hardik Pandya, Rinku Singh, and Axar Patel providing much-needed depth in the batting order.

After playing a match-winning cameo in the T20 World Cup 2024 final, Dube has proven his worth as an all-rounder, scoring 347 runs at a strike rate of 175, and has also taken 18 wickets since the last edition.

Rinku found himself sitting out of the team for a few months as he didn’t fit in the combination, but the management has realised his worth once again after handy contributions lower down the order in the New Zealand series. With 285 runs at a strike rate of 145 and the flexibility he provides in the batting order, Rinku is an invaluable asset to the team.

Meanwhile, Hardik Pandya has raised his stakes as the most valuable player in the world, continuing his stellar run with both bat and ball. After bowling the magical final over in the T20 World Cup 2024 final, Pandya has scored 579 runs at an average of 34.05 and has also scalped 21 wickets, reinforcing his status as a true match-winner.

Another hero from the last World Cup final, Axar Patel, has continued his golden touch with timely contributions with the bat and possesses the ability to provide much-needed breakthroughs with the ball as well.

A well-rounded bowling attack

While T20 is considered a batter’s game, India also have enough depth in their bowling arsenal to stop mayhem from the most fearsome batters in the world. A pace attack spearheaded by the best bowler in the world, Jasprit Bumrah, who was the Player of the Tournament in India’s last World Cup triumph.

Bumrah has the support of Arshdeep Singh with the new ball, who became India’s highest wicket taker in the format within just two years and seven months of his debut. The left-arm seamer also played a pivotal role in the T20 World Cup victory with his economical spells in the final.

The spin magicians

Apart from the seam and swing masters, India also possess two of the best spin magicians in the world, capable of leaving the top batters of the world dumbfounded with their variations in Varun Chakravarthy and Kuldeep Yadav.

While Chakravarthy has become an anomaly in world cricket, he is an undecipherable mystery with his unique variations. The world's No. 1 bowler is the highest wicket-taker in the format since the last World Cup among full member nations, having scalped 57 wickets from 28 innings.

On the other hand, Kuldeep boasts 25 wickets from 12 innings, including a match-winning display in the Asia Cup 2025.

Chinks in the armour

While everything seems covered for the Men in Blue right from the batting to bowling, there are still a few areas of concern, which could prove to be worrisome for the defending champions come the World Cup. The biggest concern for India is the form of Sanju Samson. The opening batter has looked completely out of sorts at the top of the order.

Samson finished the New Zealand series with 46 runs from five innings, with the highest score of 24. His numbers as an opener in T20Is since 2025 have been alarming, having only scored 134 runs from 11 innings at an average of 12.18 with a highest score of 37. Out of these 11 innings, he has managed to survive the power play just twice.

Apart from Samson’s form, India are also sweating over Tilak Varma’s fitness, who is undergoing rehabilitation at the Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru after having undergone surgery for an abdominal injury. Varma is the second-highest run scorer for India, since the last World Cup, with 847 runs from 22 innings at an average of 60.5 with two hundreds and four fifties to his name.

If Tilak fails to be ready in time, India do have Shreyas Iyer waiting to replace him. However, having not played T20Is for over two years, the star batter won’t find it easy to fit into the team’s batting philosophy right from the get-go.

Can Harshit rise to the occasion?

Apart from Tilak, India are dealing with another fitness concern of Washington Sundar, who has been on the sidelines due to a rib injury. Sundar’s all-around prowess makes him the perfect replacement for Axar and will be needed in the team if the latter gets injured or fails to perform midway through the tournament.

India are also carrying the inexperienced Harshit Rana in the team, who’s yet to prove his worth in T20Is. While Rana has embraced the new ball responsibility in ODIs, he has taken nine wickets at an average of 33 and an economy of 10.6 in T20Is. The youngster might find it tough to stem the run flow and exert pressure if asked to replace either Arshdeep or Bumrah due to fitness concerns.

The fielding also seems to be an area of concern just ahead of the World Cup, as there were several lapses that were witnessed in the outfield during the New Zealand series. Moreover, the move to have Ishan Kishan keep in place of Sanju Samson in the fifth T20I in Thiruvananthapuram exposed his frailties as he missed several chances behind the stumps.

Hence, while all may seem well for Team India heading into the World Cup, there are still several areas of concern for the Men in Blue.