Even a year headlined by a T20 World Cup title has produced its share of results India would rather forget.
The Colombo Draw
India’s biggest missed opportunity of the year: a drawn second Test in Colombo that cost them a series sweep and full World Test Championship points, after Sri Lanka’s Sonal Dinusha produced an epic rearguard century. Full context is in our Gill captaincy update.
Two ODI Series Defeats
- Lost 2-1 at home to New Zealand at the start of the year
- Lost 2-1 away in England, sealed at Lord’s despite a Rohit Sharma century in the decider
- Both results are covered in our roundup of India’s biggest disappointments of 2026
The Nervy Asian Games Warm-Up
While technically a win, India’s two-run victory over Japan on September 22 followed a genuine top-order collapse and required a rescue act from captain Shreyas Iyer, detailed in our Iyer update. It briefly looked like an outright upset in the making.
A Brief Loss of the Top T20I Ranking
England took the world number one T20I ranking from India on September 19, before India reclaimed it three days later. The full swing is covered in our ranking breakdown.
Context Matters
None of these results threaten India’s overall standing as the dominant force in white-ball cricket, but each exposed a genuine vulnerability worth tracking through the rest of the year.