3 reasons behind India’s downfall in T20Is

India suffered a humiliating whitewash in T20I series against Ireland in June.

The Indian Cricket Team scripted history by bagging the T20 World Cup 2026 in March, becoming the first nation to win three T20 WC titles and win two consecutive trophies.

After the title triumph victory, the India made a massive leadership change as Shreyas Iyer was appointed the new captain in the shortest format, replacing Suryakumar Yadav.

Although Suryakumar’s removal as T20I skipper broke the hearts of many fans and did not go well among many experts, Shreyas’ appointment was justified based on his excellent leadership as well as strong from in the Indian Premier League (IPL) over the last three years.

However, Shreyas Iyer has struggled to find rhythm and faced woes with his captaincy just at the start. So far, India have lost a T20I series against Ireland (2-0) and trail 1-0 in a five-match T20I series against England after two games.

It won’t be justified if the Indian captain gets all the blame, as a few other factors are also responsible for the team’s downfall in T20Is. Below, let’s discuss three of them.

3 Reasons for India’s struggles in T20I Cricket

1. Plenty of left-handers in XI

The right-left combination is a key to success in T20I cricket. India’s lineup has often been bolstered by right-handers, with left-handers not being regular, barring a few batters. However, if we look at the current T20I side, plenty of left-handed batters are there.

In the current squad against England, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Tilak Varma, Shivam Dube, Abhishek Sharma, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, and Ishan Kishan are left-handers.

Shreyas Iyer, Suryansh Shedge, and Sanju Samson are the only three right-handers. In the second ENG vs IND T20I, Iyer was the only right-hander in top seven. This makes lineup pretty one dimensional, and makes it easy for opposition to plan. Having left-right combination makes bowler change lines, lengths and even angles, which batters can cash and score.

2. Abundance of all-rounders and lack of proper ones

Having all-rounders in the XI surely makes team look strong on paper as they can contribute in more than one department. In the current team, India have a lot of bench strength in the all-rounder’s category; however, they lack effective ones. For instance, Shivam Dube, Abhishek Sharma and Suryansh Shedge are pretty solid with the bat but are not regular bowlers.

Similarly, Axar Patel and Washington Sundar can be termed as assets with ball but are not that reliable with bat. Interestingly, Harshit Rana, who is considered as genuine fast bowler, has done a great job with the bat than a few all-rounders, justifying his ability, and also highlighting the lack of effectiveness in India’s all-rounders department.

Therefore, India need to play proper all-rounders who can add value in both departments if they wish to make a comeback in the shortest format.

3. Unable to adapt to foreign conditions after prolonged home season

India have been playing continuous cricket at home since the Australia tour in 2025. They were pretty dominant at home, winning series for fun. Then after that IPL took place in same conditions, following which travelled to United Kingdom, where conditions are completely different.

For instance, India dominated in the T20 World Cup 2026 from February to March at home, but struggled against Ireland in Ireland, where conditions were different and challenging, and lost 2-0. In England too, India struggled to cross 200-run mark and also lost the second T20I.

For more updates, follow Khel Now Cricket on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Youtube; download the Khel Now Android App or IOS App and join our community on Whatsapp & Telegram.