India see off plucky Netherlands in 2026 ICC T20 World Cup Group A finale

by Devesh Jaganath

image India see off plucky Netherlands in 2026 ICC T20 World Cup Group A finale
The Indian national cricket team, reigning T20 World Cup champions and favourites to retain the title, maintained their unbeaten record in this year’s tournament by beating a spirited Netherlands in their final match in group-stage matches at the 2026 ICC T20 World Cup on Wednesday.
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Men in Blue withstand stern test by Flying Dutchman in Ahmedabad

India entered the 2026 ICC T20 World Cup as the clear favourites according to all the best online betting sites to retain their title this year, and so far, they have lived up to expectations by reaching the Super 8 stage with an unbeaten record. 

The Men in Blue have not had it all their own way in the competition, though, as they were given a proper scare by the USA in their opening match, and after fairly routine wins over Namibia and Pakistan, were again pushed hard by another associate member in the Netherlands on Wednesday. 

Suryakumar Yadav opted to bat after winning the toss at the Narendra Modi Stadium in midweek, but his side got off to a staggered start, losing the wicket of the ultra-dangerous Abhishek Sharma on the third ball, before Ishan Kishan followed his opening partner back to the pavilion in the fifth over. 

Tilak Varma and Yadav departed with the score at 110/4 in the 14th over, but the side’s blushes were spared by Shivam Dube and Hardik Pandya, who smashed a quickfire 74-run fifth-wicket partnership to steer the host nation to a solid target of 193/6 in their 20 overs. 

The Netherlands made a decent start in their chase, with Michael Levitt, Max O’Dowd, Bas de Leede, and Colin Ackermann all surpassing the 20-run mark at better than a run a ball, which saw them firmly in the contest heading into the final eight overs. 

However, Varun Chakaravarthy claimed wickets off consecutive balls in the 13th over, which halted the visitors' momentum before Jasprit Bumrah delivered a stunning spell at the death and edged the match away from the Dutchmen, who eventually came up 17 runs short of the target. 

 

Sharma enduring nightmare T20 World Cup campaign

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In the lead-up to this year’s T20 World Cup, there was massive expectation placed on Indian opener Abhishek Sharma, who moved to number one in the ICC T20 batter rankings after demolishing all sorts of records in 2025. 

However, the 25-year-old has failed to find any sort of form in this year’s global tournament and suffered yet another failure with the bat against the Dutch in midweek, when he was dismissed for a three-ball duck by off-spinner Aryan Dutt. 

His opening match of the tournament against the USA ended in a golden duck before he was forced to miss the team’s second match due to health reasons. A four-ball duck then followed against Pakistan last week, meaning he has yet to score a single run in this year's T20 World Cup. 

With that, Sharma joins an unwanted club of players who have been dismissed for three consecutive ducks in the T20 World Cup, alongside Ashish Nehra, Andre Fletcher and Roger Mukasa. No player has ever gone four innings without scoring in the tournament’s history.