Watch India’s bid to repeat history at the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026, as India take on Zimbabwe in Super 8 clash today, 7:00 PM onwards, LIVE on JioHotstar and Star Sports Network
“ If India Don’t Back Their Aggressive Brand Of Cricket, Their Semi-final Hopes Could Be In Trouble ”: Aakash Chopra
India face Zimbabwe in a crucial Super 8 match at the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026, needing a big win to improve their net run-rate. Speaking on JioHotstar’s ‘Game Plan’, JioStar expert Aakash Chopra shared his thoughts on the off-spin challenge for India’s left-handers, the method to counter Sikandar Raza, and the areas Captain Suryakumar Yadav needs to improve.
Speaking on JioHotstar’s ‘Game Plan’, JioStar expert Aakash Chopra highlighted how off-spinners have become India’s biggest headache in the tournament:
“Every delivery bowled by off-spinners to the Indian openers is slightly short, wide, and fired in. They are not giving any room. That is exactly what happened against the Netherlands, South Africa and Pakistan. Whether it was Aryan Dutt, Salman Ali Agha or Aiden Markram, everyone followed the same plan against the Indian batters, especially the left-handers. They have tied them down. In fact, no team has lost more wickets than India against finger spinners, especially off-spinners, in this World Cup. Off-spinners are usually considered easier bowlers to play. But in this tournament, the story has been quite painful from India’s point of view.”
On how India should approach against Sikandar Raza’s bowling:
“Sikandar Raza will bowl fast and follow the left-handed batters. He will keep the ball around the stumps. He is not going to bowl slower deliveries like Markram did. That is not his plan. He does not even need to change the pace much. India have two left-handers in Ishan Kishan and Abhishek Sharma opening the innings. To counter Raza, they should bring Suryakumar Yadav at number three. He is the Captain and should lead from the front. If Tilak Varma comes at three, India have two left-handers together batting together after the fall of the first wicket and this will only increase their problems. Surya at three creates the left-right combination which can trouble Zimbabwe’s bowlers. Surya is playing his fourth T20 World Cup. He is in form, needs to take charge and lead the team from the front.”
On India’s road to the semi-finals:
“The tricky problem for India is they need to win both of their remaining Super 8 matches and they will also be hoping that South Africa win their games against West Indies and Zimbabwe. But if that does not happen, then the net run-rate comes into play. That is when India will need to bring out their explosive brand of cricket. Suryakumar Yadav is the man for that role. He needs to bat at three and bat with freedom. Against South Africa, I felt he was too slow. By the time he got out, the mountain was too high for others to climb.”
On India’s current batting template:
“India have batters at the top who go hammer and tongs from ball one and lose their wicket. That puts the team in tricky situations. Then the batters who come in after are too cautious and conservative. They start eating deliveries regardless of the pitch, conditions or the bowler. They play the situation completely and fall behind the game. This is not the brand of cricket India have played in the last two years. They took pride in saying we hammer teams and score 250, 260 or 270. But Suryakumar Yadav and his men have perhaps forgotten that formula. The template now is to score just 180-190. That is good enough on some days, but good teams chase those totals easily. India need to bring back their aggressive brand of cricket. If they don’t, their hopes of making the semi-finals could be in trouble.”
