The reigning champions India will begin their T20 World Cup defence against the USA at the Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai on Saturday. When these two teams met earlier in the previous edition of the World Cup, the USA had given a run for the money to the Indians.

Rohit Sharma’s team were successful in chasing a below par target of 111 on a slow pitch at New York but took 18.2 overs to get over the line. While Rohit’s team had its strengths and weaknesses, in the last two years, Suryakumar Yadav and Gautam Gambhir have taken India’s T20I team to new greater heights.

The Men in Blue will enter the tournament as red-hot favorites and there is no doubt that they are going to embrace their ultra-aggressive approach, which has paid them rich dividends. India’s batting has been in superb form and Ishan Kishan and Abhishek Sharma will launch their attacks from the get-go.

India has suffered only four T20I losses since the beginning of 2025 and they would want to steamroll the Americans. 

However, the USA had stunned Pakistan in the previous T20I showpiece and they would look to give their best to challenge the Indian juggernauts. The US team doesn’t have a lot of experience but they must cherish the challenge and experience of facing a potent team like India.

Head to Head: Matches: 1, Won by India: 1, Won by USA: 0.

India Squad: Suryakumar Yadav (c), Axar Patel (vc), Sanju Samson, Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Ishan Kishan, Shivam Dube, Washington Sundar, Harshit Rana, Jasprit Bumrah, Varun Chakaravarthy, Kuldeep Yadav, Arshdeep Singh, Rinku Singh.

USA squad: Monank Patel (c), Jessy Singh, Andries Gous, Shehan Jayasuriya, Milind Kumar, Shayan Jahangir, Saiteja Mukkamala, Sanjay Krishnamurthi, Harmeet Singh, Nosthush Kenjige, Shadley Van Schalkwyk, Saurabh Netravalkar, Ali Khan, Mohammad Mohsin, Shubham Ranjane