Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], January 18 (ANI): Ahead of the ICC T20 World Cup, former Indian wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik said that while the Men in Blue are in a very strong position having won majority of their matches leading up to the tournament, the death bowling is a 'concern' because of the way they stack up their playing eleven and 'backing their spinners heavily'.

Team India will be starting their campaign against the USA on February 7 and have been placed in Group A alongside Pakistan, Namibia, the Netherlands and the USA. So far in their matches leading up to the tournament, India has heavily relied on the magic of their spinners, Varun Chakravarthy, Kuldeep Yadav and Axar Patel. Only one pacer, Arshdeep Singh (31 wickets in 20 matches at an average of above 18 and at second place) is amongst India's top five bowlers since their T20 World Cup win in 2024. Spinner Varun Chakravarthy (53 wickets in 27 matches at an average of almost 13) sits at the top, leagues above everyone in the Indian line-up.

This spin-heavy approach has paid off for India so far, as they are yet to drop a series since their T20 World Cup win and have won 27 of their 36 matches since then, losing just five, two each ending in a tie and a no result. They also won the Asia Cup last year in spin-friendly conditions in the UAE.

Speaking on JioStar's 'The Experts' View', Karthik admitted that Team India is enjoying a 'phenomenal record in a fickle format like T20', but in the format, no match is going to be easy.

'The Indian team is in a very strong position at the moment. As we sit here, they have won 29 out of the 36 matches they have played in T20 cricket post the World Cup, which is a phenomenal record to have. In a very fickle format like T20, where upsets are the norm, this level of consistency is remarkable. Winning 29 out of the last 36 games they have played is, I feel, very hard to replicate. For starters, it tells you about the strength of the team. They have also played a very good Asia Cup in the recent past and went past Pakistan in the final, beating them three out of three times. If you look at the depth of this group, there's India, there's Pakistan, and then there are three associate nations who are still finding their feet at the international level. You would expect India or Pakistan to beat them, but the beauty of this format is that you cannot walk into any game thinking it is going to be easy. You lose the toss, you are bowling, and suddenly, you are thinking this could be challenging at the back end. You need to get an above-par score to give yourself a chance to defend under dew. So, I would say India are in a very good place.'

On India's death bowling concerns, he said, 'Death bowling is a concern. I think it's a challenge because of the way they stack up their eleven. When they have played in the subcontinent, they have gone with (Jasprit) Bumrah, Hardik (Pandya) as the second pacer, and Shivam Dube as the third, while backing their spinners heavily. At times, when the game goes deep, especially when they are defending a total, the back end can become a challenge.'

India's squad for T20 World Cup 2026 and New Zealand T20I series: Suryakumar Yadav (capt), Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson (wk), Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel (vice-capt), Rinku Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, Varun Chakaravarthy, Washington Sundar, Ishan Kishan (wk). (ANI)