Arshdeep Singh needs to work on his economy going into T20 World Cup 2026

Arshdeep Singh’s wicket-taking ability stands out, but his economy rate remains an area to address ahead of T20 World Cup 2026.

With 23 wickets and 15 innings, Arshdeep Singh has been India’s third-most successful T20I bowler since the beginning of 2025. However, his economy rate of 9.31 is the most expensive among those who have bowled more than 30 overs in this period. Going into the T20 World Cup 2026, Arshdeep’s economy appears to be a major concern for the Men in Blue.

There’s no doubt about Arshdeep’s effectiveness in T20Is. He has walked out of games with figures of 2/32 as well as 5/51. Is it often a very peculiar question – figures closer to which of these extremes would a skipper prefer?

Interestingly, Arshdeep claimed the latter figures against New Zealand in the fifth T20I at Thiruvananthapuram. The Punjab-born finished the recently-concluded series as the leading wicket-taker (8) but at a costly economy rate of 10.50.

Arshdeep continues leaking runs in powerplay & death overs
Since the beginning of 2025, Arshdeep has picked up 10 wickets in 15 T20I innings inside the powerplay. But his economy rate of 9.72 inside the first six overs of the innings isn’t quite inspiring. Even during the death overs (16-20), his economy rate is nearly 10 at an average of 14.62 for his eight wickets.

Arshdeep has been smashed for 45 boundaries and nine sixes in 15 T20I innings of the powerplay, which is nearly three boundaries per match. This is where he needs to improve. Those boundaries release the pressure off the batters. Moreover, they don’t help his bowling partner from the other end either.

Read More: Arshdeep Singh has the best SR (26.31) for an active India pacer in powerplay (overs 1-10) in ODIs

Arshdeep Singh’s T20I performance since 2025

Arshdeep’s powerplay economy rate approaches 10 in India during the same period. Moreover, the boundary rate goes up to 3.6 per innings at home, which continues to be a headache for the management. However, he has done well in that department during the death overs.

Arshdeep Singh’s T20I performance since 2025 in India

In the last 13 months, Arshdeep has a T20I economy rate of 9.79 in victories inside the first six overs of the innings. In the overs between 16 and 20, he has bagged seven wickets at an economy rate of nine, whenever India win. But the boundary rate continues to create issues for his captain.

Arshdeep Singh’s T20I performance since 2025 in victories

Consistency & smart bowling could be Arshdeep’s mantra
Since the beginning of 2025, Arshdeep Singh has a T20I economy rate of 9.31 in 56.4 overs. Meanwhile, India’s premier pacer, Jasprit Bumrah, has recorded an economy rate of only 7.74 in 56.1 overs. This is a massive gap between India’s new-ball pacers who are guaranteed to play most of the T20 World Cup 2026 games.

In the same period, Bumrah’s T20 powerplay economy of 7.61 is way better than Arshdeep’s 9.12. The Ahmedabad-born stretches the economy rate to 7.64 in 23 innings during the death overs, while Arshdeep goes up to 9.62.

Read More: IND vs NZ 2025-26, 5th T20I: Kishan’s whirlwind ton, Arshdeep fifer blow away NZ; India win 4-1

Arshdeep & Bumrah’s comparison in T20 performance since 2025

One of the biggest reasons for Bumrah’s exceptional performance in powerplay and death overs is his unique style and high accuracy. Most importantly, he is calm and follows the process. That’s exactly what Arshdeep had been missing in the last few months.

During the Thiruvananthapuram T20I against the Kiwis, the left-arm pacer was clipped for three boundaries in the first four balls. Three of those four balls were leg-lined. Despite Finn Allen nailing him for four boundaries and one six in five successive balls, Arshdeep kept looking for the swing and put the balls in the right-handed batter’s slot.

Two overs later, Bumrah was introduced in the fifth over of the innings. After being sent into the stands for a six by Allen, the Ahmedabad-born didn’t put a length delivery for the next four balls. It was the mixture of variations – a back of a length delivery, full and fast around the leg, a bouncer, and a full delivery. The batter, therefore, never had a chance to read the bowler’s mind.

Arshdeep needs to learn this trait and there is hardly anyone better than his teammate Bumrah to learn from. More variations with the ball could be the key to success for the Punjab pacer. He has already proven his effectiveness, finishing as the joint-highest wicket-taker in the previous T20 World Cup in 2024 with 17 wickets. He will be aiming to continue similar dominance at home in the 2026 edition.

The first chance to start working towards improvement will be in India’s only warm-up game against South Africa on February 4 at the DR DY Patil Sports Academy, Navi Mumbai. India’s season-opener takes place on February 7 against USA at the iconic Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.

*PP – Powerplay

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