New Delhi, June 11 (IANS) Former India opener Aakash Chopra believes India’s quest for the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026 title will be shaped by a demanding group-stage campaign, but he sees the challenge as a necessary test for a team aspiring to become world champions.

Drawn alongside heavyweight opponents Australia and South Africa, India face one of the tournament’s toughest paths to the knockout stages. Chopra, however, argued that there is no easy route to lifting a World Cup.

“You will have to beat either South Africa or Australia. If you’re not in this group, then you’ll get New Zealand and England. So, you are going to be up against at least two formidable opponents. And if you want to win the World Cup, you will have to go through a trial by fire,” Chopra told JioStar.

While acknowledging the difficulty of the group, Chopra pointed to India’s schedule as a potential advantage. With matches against Pakistan and the Netherlands preceding the clash against South Africa, he believes India will have an opportunity to build momentum before facing their biggest tests.

“But the good thing is that by the time India play South Africa, their campaign will be well underway, having hopefully won a couple of games already against Pakistan and the Netherlands,” he stated.

Chopra stressed that victories alone may not be enough in a tightly contested group, urging India to target convincing wins against the lower-ranked teams to strengthen their net run rate.

“Ideally, what should happen is that you win against Bangladesh, the Netherlands and Pakistan by a good margin, so the net run rate is also on your side,” he noted.

The former batter also outlined what he believes would be the ideal scenario heading into India’s meeting with six-time champions Australia, as he said, “You need to have your campaign peak in a fashion that by the time you meet Australia, you’re almost through, and the pressure is on the opposition.”

Beyond the group’s competitive landscape, Chopra highlighted a significant change in India’s batting identity, claiming the side now possesses the explosive firepower that was previously missing from its T20 arsenal.

According to Chopra, India’s inability to consistently match other teams in the six-hitting department had often been a factor behind their struggles in major T20 tournaments.

“We have a strong batting unit. There was always a discussion about why India used to fall short in T20 cricket, because the other teams had the ability to hit more sixes. We were still more of a four-hitting team.

“But now, Smriti Mandhana can hit sixes, Harmanpreet Kaur, Shafali Verma and Richa Ghosh can all clear the ropes consistently, and if you need her, there’s Bharti Fulmali, who can hit sixes as well,” Chopra mentioned.

With power-hitters spread throughout the batting order, Chopra feels India are now better equipped to meet the demands of modern T20 cricket. He said, “So, you have plenty of six-hitters across your playing XI. Given the demands of modern T20 cricket, this is a must-have ability in your side.”

–IANS

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