India’s T20I captain, Shreyas Iyer, expressed displeasure with the performances of his bowling attack in the IND vs WI T20I series that ended in a 2-2 draw after the series-deciding game in Bengaluru was washed out on Saturday.
The India vs West Indies T20I series 2026 was a high-scoring one, laden with fours and sixes and huge team totals.
In the first four matches, Indian bowlers conceded 57 sixes as compared to 41 the opposition bowling attack were whacked for. India were out-sixed across the four completed games and also in the two matches that they lost.
In the two lost matches, India failed to defend 249 (West Indies chased down 250 with nine balls to spare) and conceded 247.
Seven Indian bowlers sent down five or more overs in the IND vs WI T20I series, and six of them leaked runs at an economy of more than 10.5 runs per over. The experienced Axar Patel had a nightmarish series with a disastrous economy of 12.21.
Captain Iyer was critical of the bowlers, suggesting that the result would have fallen in India’s favor had the bowlers been better in their craft.
Iyer said after the series, “Well, it could have definitely been different if we had bowled well in the second and the fourth game [the games India lost]. Obviously, batting has been sensational throughout. It’s just about that execution, which we were falling short.”
Shai Hope was cruising through in the series: Shreyas Iyer
Iyer, who struck a century in the 1st T20I, showered praise on the West Indies captain Shai Hope, who blasted centuries in the second and fourth T20Is, both of which the West Indies won.
Hope ended up bagging the Player of the Series award for his 261 runs, scored at a strike rate of 190, with two centuries and one fifty.
Iyer added, “Credit where it’s due. They batted phenomenally well, and also Hope – brilliant performance by him, the way he was cruising through in the series. It was difficult at times, but kudos to him.”
We want to play aggressive cricket in New Zealand: Iyer
The Indian T20I contingent will soon fly to New Zealand, where the 5-match T20I series will begin on October 22. The Indian skipper pledged that the team would look to continue playing an aggressive brand of cricket.
“We had this mindset that we want to play aggressive cricket and see to it that we are at the top of our game. We replicated it in some instances, but we weren’t able to repeat it and be consistent throughout. But it’s a great learning and a lot of positives as well,” Iyer asserted.
“I hope that we keep repeating well and it is going to be a challenging series in New Zealand now.”
The India vs New Zealand T20I series will put an added spotlight on Iyer, under whom India have lost T20I series to Ireland and England and failed to seal the series against the West Indies in four completed games.
In New Zealand, Iyer will have the experienced Bhuvneshwar Kumar and mystery spinner Varun Chakaravarthy at his disposal. Kumar was drafted into the squad for the 5th T20I, but India didn’t get the chance to bowl.
When is the India vs New Zealand T20I series?
The first match of the IND vs NZ T20I series will be played on October 22, Thursday, in Christchurch. The match is scheduled to start at 12:30 PM Indian Standard Time (IST).
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