T20 World Cup 2026: 5 Indian players to watch out for in IND v ZIM match

India and Zimbabwe will clash in their Super 8s stage game of the T20 World Cup 2026 tournament. This match will be played at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai on February 26, 2026.

Both the teams have suffered big losses in their first game of the Super 8s stage. India suffered a 76-run loss to South Africa at Ahmedabad, hurting their net run rate. On the other hand, Zimbabwe was defeated by the West Indies at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. Zimbabwe conceded 254 runs and could only manage 147 runs, losing the game by 107 runs.

India will need to defeat Zimbabwe to stay alive in the race for the semi-finals and will need to win big to better their net run rate. And these five Indian players might be the ones to watch out for if India wants to win big.

Here are the 5 Indian players to watch out for in the IND v ZIM T20 World Cup 2026 match:

5. Kuldeep Yadav

India wrist-spinner Kuldeep Yadav is expected to play in this game against Zimbabwe, as the match will be played at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chepauk, Chennai. The pitch here helps spinners a lot, and India will look to bring in the expertise of Kuldeep to gain an upper hand against Zimbabwe batters. It has been a travesty that Kuldeep has been warming the bench in this tournament.

4. Abhishek Sharma

Abhishek Sharma has been wanting for runs in this entire tournament. He finally broke his streak of three ducks by scoring 15 runs against South Africa. He looked a bit jittery against South Africa, despite his runs. However, the pitch in Chennai helps the batters as well, giving them time to play the bowlers better. He will be encountering the spinners right from the start, and Abhishek should prepare for the same.

3. Varun Chakravarthy

Varun Chakaravarthy will be the prime focus in this encounter in Chennai, as it is his home ground. Varun knows the pitch and the ground like the back of his hand and will be expected to give India the edge. Chakaravarthy has done well with 10 wickets at an economy of 6.81 and best bowling of 3/7.

2. Ishan Kishan

Ishan Kishan is the best batter for India in this tournament with 176 runs in five games with a best score of 77 and two fifties to his name with a strike rate of 193.40. Though he scored a duck in the last game India played against South Africa, expect Kishan to go bang-bang against Zimbabwe, as he needs to fire to put India in a spot of advantage.

1. Shivam Dube

Shivam Dube, who hails from Mumbai, plays his Indian Premier League (IPL) matches for Chennai Super Kings (CSK) at the Chepauk in Chennai. Under MS Dhoni, he has been groomed to bash spinners on the slow Chennai pitch, and we expect him to bat higher against Zimbabwe, who will be fielding extra spinners, keeping the surface in mind. Dube has made 102 runs with a strike rate of 154.90 with one fifty.

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