ICC T20 World Cup 2026, India Vs USA Preview: Boys In Blue Open Title Defence At Wankhede! All You Need To Know

ICC T20 World Cup 2026, India Vs USA Preview:

The Indian Men’s Cricket Team will begin their defence of the ICC T20 World Cup with their 2026 opener against the United States of America at the hallowed Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Saturday, as Suryakumar Yadav and Co. look to script history by retaining the T20 crown, an achievement that yet remains out of the reach of anyone who has tried.

Suryakumar, who fulfilled a billion dreams with his boundary-line blinder in the final of the previous edition of the event, will look to lead the Boys in Blue to the chequered flag in front of adoring home fans in a campaign which is co-hosted on home soil.

India boast an all-star line-up that can play any field out of the park when on song, and eye a place

for themselves in the annals of history in their quest of hitherto uncharted laurels with a title defence.

Team USA, who caused an upset against India’s arch-rivals Pakistan last time out, will look to one-up themselves when they go up against the reigning champions, but getting the better of India in their own backyard is a herculean task for any outfit– a fact the side from North America will be aware of.

The teams are grouped alongside Namibia, The Netherlands and Pakistan in Group A, and the hosts are a strong favourites to go all way, with all the makings of a flawless contest given the abundance in strength in the ranks of the Men in Blue and the gulf in quality between India and the competing sides.

The smart money is on India to open their Group Stage assignment with aplomb, but the Men In Blue would be wary of the uncertainity of the sport and the outside chances of USA to cause a stir.

What: India Men’s Cricket Team Vs USA Men’s Cricket Team, ICC T20 World Cup 2026, Match No. 3

When: February 7, 2026

Where: Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai

Start Time: 7 PM IST

Injury News: India had a last-minute setback as pacer Harshit Rana was ruled out of the showpiece due to knee injury he sustained in India’s warm-up game, and has been replaced by Mohamed Siraj.

Pitch Report And Weather Forecast: The Wankhede pitch proved to be friendly to batters yet again, while seamers look set to get some movement early doors. There have been no predictions of rain and the temperature is anticipated to be around the sub-30 mark.

Probable XIs:

India: Suryakumar Yadav (C), Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan (WK), Tilak Varma, Axar Patel, Shivam Dube, Rinku Singh, Hardik Pandya, Varun Chakaravarthy, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah.

USA: Monank Patel (C), Andries Gous, Shayan Jahangir, Saiteja Mukkamala, Milind Kumar, Sanjay Krishnamurthi, Harmeet, Shadley Van Schalkwyk, Saurabh Netravalkar, Mohammad Mohsin.

Squads:

India: Suryakumar Yadav (C), Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Sanju Samson, Shivam Dube, Ishan Kishan, Hardik Pandya, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Harshit Rana, Varun Chakaravarthy, Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Rinku Singh

USA: Monank Patel (C), Jessy Singh, Andries Gous, Shehan Jayasuriya, Milind Kumar, Shayan Jahangir, Saiteja Mukkamala, Sanjay Krishnamurthi, Harmeet Singh, Nosthush Kenjige, Shadley Van Schalkwyk, Saurabh Netravalkar, Ali Khan, Mohammad Mohsin, Shubham Ranjane