If it wasn’t unfolding before our eyes, it would sound like an exaggeration. T20 cricket is designed to withstand sustained scrutiny. She is fickle, ruthless and often indifferent to reputation. The shorter the format, the thinner the line between the best and the rest. And yet India turned this chaos into a pattern.
From August 2023 India treated the T20I as a personal domain, sails through bilateral series and multi-national tournaments without blinking an eye. They remained unbeaten across competitions, winning 49 of their 63 matches and losing just three. The centerpiece of that run was a flawless T20 World Cup campaign that required top-level adaptability. India began on the seam-friendly greens of New York, moved on to the batting-friendly pitches of the Caribbean Islands, adapted to the spin-spinning conditions of Guyana and finished on the striped run of Barbados. Eight matches, eight opponents, eight victories.
Since lifting the trophy in 2024, India have not lost a single bilateral series or tournament. Their match record at this stage stands at 32 wins and just five defeats. They sit atop the ICC Men’s T20I Team Rankings and boast of leading performers in the format, with Abhishek Sharma as the No.1 batsman in the Men’s T20I and Varun Chakaravarthy as the No.1 bowler in the T20I.
Now comes the next chapter. India enter the T20 World Cup 2026 as hosts and defending champions, bearing the weight of history. No host country has ever won the Men’s T20 World Cup. No defending champion has successfully retained the title. Suryakumar Yadav and his side are on the brink of something the format has never seen.
Can Gambhir and Suryakumar lead India to a T20 World Cup title defence? (PTI Photo)
WHAT MAKES INDIA UNBEATABLE IN T20Is
This Indian team is not just aiming to survive the first six overs. They aim to misrepresent them. Abhishek Sharma arrives at the World Cup as the No. 1 ranked T20I batsman, a position he has earned through volume, impact and fearlessness. This is not a brief surge but a sustained output that defines India’s intent. From prom one, the message is clear. Pitchers must not settle.
T20 batting size comes in different shapes. Some offer stability, others finishing performance or flexibility. The danger is different. Danger is what makes captains feel that they are far from losing control. Abhishek thrives in this space, forcing the defensive fields even before the innings settles.
Abhishek has been India’s biggest asset in the T20Is. (AP photo)
Then there is Suryakumar Yadav, the captain and the linchpin around which this batting order revolves. A career T20I strike rate of over 160 still defies convention, but it’s his timing and range that unsettles the opposition the most. Around him, Sanju Samson and, fitness permitting, Tilak Varma complete a back four that combines aggression with control. Both may take a few balls, but once they’re caught, containment will be difficult.
The construction of the Indian team follows a simple rule. Running speed must never die. Goals may fall and plans may fluctuate, but the scoring cannot stop. Power hitters, a left-right combination and a batsman comfortable against both spin and pace ensure the momentum survives deep into the innings. The real advantage lies in how many players can turn the match in one phase.
Indian batting is attracting attention. Their bowling completes the competitions. Can India’s bowling attack make it to the World Cup? (PTI Photo)
They have a rare commodity in T20 cricket, a fast bowler who shapes the start and end of the innings. Jasprit Bumrah remains unbeatable in his ability to strike early and close out games at the death. His overs can do more than save runs. It changes direction.
India have options around him that travel across conditions. Harshit Rana brings pace and aggression while Arshdeep Singh offers angles and control under pressure. Together, they give India command across phases.
With the tournament in the subcontinent, India’s resources are spinning even more. Spin was crucial to their success in the 2024 T20 World Cup and 2024–25 Champions Trophy and remains a defining force.
Kuldeep Yadav, Varun Chakaravarthy and Axar Patel present three distinct challenges. This is not an overlap, but an intention. In India and Sri Lanka, surfaces may stick, slide or slow down under lights. India has it all.
To achieve what no team has done before, winning the T20 World Cup as the hosts and defending champions, excellence alone is not enough. Fielding will be equally important. Slicing singles, attacking the ball and holding chances could turn control into certainty.
BACK CLAIM NUMBERS
India’s preparation for the World Cup has been solid and consistent. A 3-1 win over 2024 finalists South Africa in December set the tone and it carried over into the New Year, where they battled out an unassailable 3-1 lead against New Zealand. Since the last T20 World Cup, India have won 30 out of 40 matches and lost just six, a level of consistency unmatched by any other side. A win rate of 75 per cent, a batting average of 30.81 and a run rate of 9.75 for a team that scores quickly without losing form. England may score quicker on power-plays but have won barely half of their matches, a reminder that pace alone is rarely sustainable.
In T20 cricket, chases are supposed to be tense, shaped by small moments and increasing pressure. Early completion is rare. When you finish them with an unused half shift, send a message. India’s remaining 60-ball chase against New Zealand in Guwahati tops this list not just for speed but also for context. New Zealand not giving the game away, yet India finished the chase before they could settle down. No team has ever chased down the target in 10 overs against them, which shows how far this performance sat outside the norm.
Sustaining success over time is increasingly difficult in a format built on turnover. Units are rotating, conditions are changing, and momentum is fading fast. Winning 11 consecutive T20I series goes beyond form. It points to a side that adapts quickly, absorbs pressure and keeps standards intact regardless of venue or opposition. That this run matches the best achieved by a full member nation and surpasses India’s own previous series speaks volumes for the depth of the current set-up.
Home advantage has also become less reliable in modern T20 cricket, which is why extended unbeaten runs still carry weight. India’s 10-game winning streak at home has been met with twisting tracks, slippery night surfaces and flat scoring pitches. Winning consistently in these conditions shows preparation and depth rather than comfort. Visiting teams are not simply defeated. They are worn out, series after series.
YES INDIA CAN DEFEND THE TITLE
No team has won the Men’s T20 World Cup at home, defended the title or lifted the trophy more than twice. However, India are a different proposition in T20Is. This page has closed the usual escape routes that the format allows. They score quickly without panicking, absorb goals without losing shape and defend a total without needing perfect conditions.
Roles are clear, depth runs through the XI and match-winners operate across phases rather than in isolation. India have not lost a bilateral T20I series since 2023 and with Suryakumar Yadav finding form at the right time, the pieces are firmly in place.
This is a team built around patterns that hold green tops, slow turnovers and flat run-fests. A bowling attack that dominates both the power play and the death is bolstered by a batting order that continues regardless of setbacks. India arrived prepared, without hope.
It may be unfair to Australia, England or South Africa to call them outright favourites, but this Indian side has come apart. If their batting and bowling matches the sharp fielding, it will be difficult to stop them at home.
T20 cricket always leaves room for chaos. Lost hour. Rosa. Collapse on a big night. But if India defend their title, the debate ends. They won’t just be champions again, but the standard by which all others must follow.
– The end
Issued by:
Debodinna Chakraborty
Published on:
January 31, 2026