Tough challenges await India in T20 World Cup 2026

India may head into the 2026 T20 World Cup wearing the favourites’ tag, but former skipper Rohit Sharma believes the road to the title could be trickier than it looks.

Ranked No.1 in T20Is and coming off a dominant year, India are widely expected to cruise into the knockouts. Yet Rohit has flagged a key selection dilemma that could test the decision-making of captain Suryakumar Yadav and head coach Gautam Gambhir.

Speaking ahead of the tournament, Rohit said the biggest headache for the team management will be deciding how to structure the spin attack. India have enjoyed tremendous success with spinners over the past year, with Varun Chakravarthy, Kuldeep Yadav and Axar Patel consistently strangling opposition batting line-ups. The question, however, is whether India can afford to play two specialist wrist-spinners together throughout the competition.

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Real Challenge During World Cup: Rohit Explained

Rohit explained that conditions during the World Cup - scheduled at the tail end of winter and the start of spring - are likely to be heavily influenced by dew, especially in night matches. That factor could reduce the effectiveness of spin and make team balance a major concern.

“The real challenge will be whether you can play Kuldeep and Varun together. If you do that, you are almost forced to go in with only two specialist seamers, and that’s not easy," said Rohit during a recent interaction.

Fielding all three frontline spinners - Axar, Kuldeep and Varun- would significantly weaken India’s pace resources. In such a scenario, one of India’s key fast bowlers, Arshdeep Singh, would have to sit out, leaving Jasprit Bumrah as the lone specialist quick. The pace duties would then be shared by all-rounders Hardik Pandya and Shivam Dube, a combination that carries its own risks.

Despite acknowledging the complications, Rohit admitted the temptation to play both Kuldeep and Varun together would be strong, given their quality and match-winning ability.

He also underlined how widespread the dew issue is likely to be. “In February and March, dew is a big factor almost everywhere in India. Even places like Mumbai, where it doesn’t get very cold, you still see heavy dew. I’d say 90 to 95 percent of grounds are affected,” he said.

According to Rohit, there is no perfect formula. Every option comes with a trade-off, and settling on a fixed playing XI will be far from straightforward. “If you go with three spinners, you have to drop a pacer, and that might not always be the right call. It all depends on how the captain and coach want to approach it,” he said.

In Rohit’s view, the toughest part for India’s leadership will be choosing who to leave out as any omission would mean sidelining one of the best players in the world.