ICC T20 World Cup 2026: Suryakumar, bowlers give India 29-run win over the USA

Mumbai: Minnows United States of America briefly threatened to do the unthinkable, but the brilliance of skipper Suryakumar Yadav and the collective might of his bowlers ensured heavyweights India overcame the early jitters to kick off their title defence of the T20 World Cup on a successful note here on Saturday.

After a fired-up Americans, led superbly by medium pacer Shadley van Schalkwyk (4/25), brought the in-form Indian batting to its knees by reducing them to 77/6 in the 13th over, Suryakumar single-handedly scripted the resurrection with a typically powerful 49-ball 84 not out to power the hosts to a competitive 161/9 at the Wankhede Stadium.

Unlike the batters, barring Suryakumar, who fluffed the lines, the Indian bowlers were spot-on. Arshdeep Singh, Mohammed Siraj, Varun Chakravarthy and Axar Patel brought their A game to the party, stifling the inexperienced Americans from the start and rarely loosening the noose to restrict them to 132/8 for a 29-run victory.

Although the bowlers got the job done for India rather smoothly in the end, the Men In Blue actually dug themselves into a deep hole with their over-aggressive approach backfiring against the disciplined American attack that came out with a plan and executed it perfectly on a balmy night. Opening pacer Ali Khan (1/13) and first-change van Schalkwyk did bowl in the hitting arc, but wonderful changes of pace and smart field placements rocked the Indians.

First to depart was Abhishek Sharma, who has been the main protagonist in India’s template of destructive batting. Attempting his trademark lofted back-foot punch to a pitched-up one off his first ball, Abhishek held out to Sanjay Krishnamurthy to sweep it in the deep. Abhishek couldn’t believe what he’d done.

But more unbelievable things happened in the final over of the Powerplay, where Schalkwyk bagged three wickets — Ishan Kishan, Tilak Varma, and Shivam Dube — to leave the Indians in a spot of bother at 46/4. Big-hitter Rinku Singh and Hardik Pandya, in a bid to counter-attack and unsettle the Americans, also perished in quick succession to leave India reeling at 77/6.

India’s hopes of avoiding a catastrophic collapse all hinged on Suryakumar and his deputy Axar. The duo first steadied the ship with cautious batting, but just when the momentum started to shift towards India Axar fell, bringing an end to their 41-run stand.

Then Suryakumar took it all upon himself to fire India past 150. Fresh off a Player of the Series performance in the just-concluded series against New Zealand, the 35-year-old started to throw the kitchen sink from the 16th over. The big difference came in the final over off Saurabh Netravalkar, the hero of the US’ dream run in the last edition, who endured a bad day in the office by conceding 65 runs.

Suryakumar smashed the first ball, a good yorker, between point and backward point. The next ball, he unleashed his patented flick over deep fine leg that had captain Monank Patel offering some advice to his senior pro. It didn’t work, as Suryakumar smashed another 6 and a 4 to turn the tide India’s way.

SCOREBOARD

INDIA

Kishan c Milind b van Schalkwyk 20

(16b, 1x4, 2x6)

Abhishek c Krishnamurthi b Khan 0

(1b)

Varma c Patel b Schalkwyk 25

(16b, 3x4, 1x6)

Suryakumar (not out) 83

(48b, 10x4, 4x6)

Dube c Netravalkar b van Schalkwyk 0

(1b)

Rinku c Milind b Mohsin 6

(14b)

Pandya c Mukkamalla b Harmeet 5

(6b, 1x4)

Axar c Mohsin b Harmeet 14

(11b, 2x4)

Arshdeep c Milind b van Schalkwyk 4

(6b, 1x4)

Chakravarthy (run out) 0

(0b)

Extras (W-3) 3

TOTAL (for 9 wkts, 20 overs) 161

Fall of wickets: 1-8 (Abhishek), 2-45 (Kishan), 3-46 (Varma), 4-46 (Dube), 5-72 (Rinku), 6-77 (Pandya), 7-118 (Axar), 8-140 (Arshdeep), 9-161 (Chakravarthy).

Bowling: Netravalkar 4-0-65-0, Khan 2-0-13-1, van Schalkwyk 4-0-25-4 (w-1), Mohsin 4-0-16-1, Ranjane 2-0-16-0 (w-1), Harmeet 4-0-26-2 (w-1).

USA

Gous c Varma b Siraj 6

(9b, 1x6)

Mukkamalla c Chakravarthy b Siraj 2

(7b)

Monank c Dube b Arshdeep 0

(2b)

Milind st Kishan b Chakravarthy 34

(34b, 3x4, 1x6)

Krishnamurthi c Arshdeep b Axar 37

(31b, 1x4, 2x6)

Ranjane lbw Siraj 37

(31b, 1x4, 2x6)

Harmeet c Siraj b Axar 0

(1b)

Mohsin c Varma b Arshdeep 8

(9b, 1x4)

van Schalkwyk (not out) 2

(5b)

Extras (LB-3, W-3) 6

TOTAL (for 8 wkts, 20 overs) 132

Fall of wickets: 1-8 (Gous), 2-11 (Monank), 3-13 (Mukkamalla), 4-71 (Milind), 5-98 (Krishnamurthi), 6-98 (Harmeet), 7-110 (Mohsin), 8-132 (Ranjane).

Bowling: Arshdeep 4-0-18-2 (w-1), Siraj 4-0-29-3 (w-1), Chakravarthy 4-0-24-1, Axar 4-0-24-2, Hardik 4-0-34-0.

Result: India won by 29 runs.

PoM: Suryakumar Yadav

India’s next match: Vs Namibia (Feb 12, New Delhi)