India up and running at 2026 T20 World Cup with victory over USA

by Devesh Jaganath | by Devesh Jaganath

image India up and running at 2026 T20 World Cup with victory over USA
India held firm despite a spirited effort by the USA to win their opening match of the 2026 T20 World Cup at the Wankhede Stadium on Saturday afternoon. Captain Suryakumar Yadav played the key role in steering his side over the line and avoiding a shock opening-day defeat.

Yadav steers India to nervy win against impressive USA

The opening day of the 2026 ICC T20 World Cup produced plenty of entertainment, but in the end, all three of the favoured sides in action managed to secure victories, including India against the USA. 

However, what was evident from Day 1 of the tournament was that the associate nations in the competition are not just here to make up the numbers, as the USA proved by running the tournament favourites right down to the wire. 

The Stars and Stripes won the toss in Mumbai and got off to the perfect start, knocking over the ultra-dangerous Abhishek Sharma for a golden duck before restricting the Men in Blue to 46/4 in the powerplay, with Ishan Kishan, Tilak Varma and Shivam Dube all dismissed inside the first six overs. 

India’s middle order also failed to deliver, with Rinku Singh and Hardik Pandya adding just 11 runs. However, an inspired innings of 84 runs from 49 deliveries by Suryakumar Yadav helped the hosts to reach a defendable total of 161/9. 

Unfortunately for the USA, they failed to carry their momentum into their innings, with Andries Gous, Saiteja Mukkamalla and captain Monank Patel all falling inside the first four overs, which handed the advantage back to the reigning world champions. 

Milind Kumar, Sanjay Krishnamurthi and Shubham Ranjane did their best to fight back in the middle overs, but India’s spin combination of Axar Patel and Varun Chakaravarthy proved too good, strangling the visitors' ability to score freely. 

Mohammed Siraj was the pick of the Indian bowlers, finishing with 3/29 in his four overs. Arsheep Singh and Patel took two wickets each, while Chakaravarthy ended with a tidy 1/24, as India claimed a 29-run victory and moved to the top of Group A. 

India crowned Under-19 World Cup champions 

Over in Southern Africa, India clinched their sixth ICC Under-19 World Cup title on Friday evening, beating England by 100 runs, thanks to a stunning performance by rising star Vaibhav Suryavanshi. 

The 14-year-old prodigy, who has already lit up the Indian Premier League and has been compared to the legendary Sachin Tendulkar, smashed an incredible 175 from just 80 balls, including 15 fours and 15 sixes at a strike rate of 218.75. 

With that knock, the teenager also obliterated several records, including the highest score in a U19 World Cup final, the sixth-highest score in the history of U19 World Cups, and the highest number of sixes in a U19 World Cup innings.