Spin bowling will be India’s biggest threat in the 2026 World Cup
And that plan is to attack them with spin. Well, the first major concern is handling. India has already dropped nine catches in the tournament. But the bigger problem is controlling spider. So far, Indian batters have faced 42 overs of spin in the ongoing 2026 T20 World Cup.
They scored 315 runs in those overs, with the spinners taking 15 wickets so far in the showpiece match. Even smaller teams like the US and Netherlands managed to bring India closer with this trick. They did not allow Indian batters to play freely. They bowled tight lines and did not give easy singles.
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Ryan ten Doeschate told the media, as quoted by Revsportz: “The Dutch boys often took the pace of the ball. And obviously teams are bowling fingers at us a lot because we have so many left-handers in our line-up. That’s a challenge. That’s true (left-handers have made it easier for the opposition). We don’t have many options. We have Sanju in the side.”
Large grounds and slow pitches help spinners
Ryan ten Doeschate said “fingerspinners” are a big threat, but the large size of the ground and somewhat slow pitches also help spinners control certain parts of the match.
The coach further pointed out that Pakistan had bowled as many as 14 overs of finger spin but they did not have many. However, he admitted that Dutch off-spinner Aryan Dutt used smart variations, bowled slower through the air and used the big boundaries well to create pressure.
Ten Doeschate also emphasized that the larger stadiums mean longer borders, making it more difficult to take control. In Colombo the pitch was slow, making it even more difficult to attack spinners. And the Indian coach said such conditions make spin bowling more dangerous.
Finger spin is a big challenge: Ryan ten Doeschate
Now, in the Super 8 stage, things will be tough as India will face South Africa, Zimbabwe and West Indies. The Proteas side has strong spin options such as Aiden Markram, George Linde and Keshav Maharaj. West Indies can use Roston Chase and Gudakesh Motie. Zimbabwe has Sikandar Raza, Ryan Burl and Wellington Masakadza, all of whom are capable of creating problems.
With so many quality spinners waiting in the next round, Ryan ten Doeschate admitted that the Men in Blue will have to make quick adjustments and be smart against the finger spinners.
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He further said, “I would say twiddling fingers. It is a big challenge. The point is that we have to have plans where the wickets do hold up and the boundaries are bigger. We have to be able to have a game plan to deal with that threat. It is something we will have to concentrate on.”
Like I said, with the amount of finger spin we’re going to get in the next three games, it’s going to be important that we dominate that phase of the game.”
Ryan ten Doeschate hopes for better fieldwork in Super 8
Speaking about the defending champions’ poor fielding in the group stages, Ryan ten Doeschate said dropping catches is “never great” but the players work very hard, and such things happen in the format. He concluded by saying: “Especially in the Super 8 stage, and we are talking about the next stage, we will see some really good fielding teams.”
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