India’s T20 World Cup squad is announced, and as predicted by a few, Shubman Gill’s place is in danger after not scoring runs, but the question was whether the coach and selection committee would take a bold call, and they have taken it. There is also no Jitesh Sharma for the Indian team, and Ishan Kishan gets a call-up after almost two years in the team.
The squad that India has announced will be the squad for the New Zealand series as well as the 2026 T20 World Cup. Basically, the New Zealand series starts on the 11th of January 2026. Eventually, the T20I series will start from the 21st of January 2026 and will end on the 31st of January. Later, we have the 2026 T20 World Cup starting from the 7th of February 2026.
Also check out: ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 Schedule Revealed: Venues, Timings, and all you need to know
No place for vice captain Shubman Gill in India’s T20 World Cup squad | Ishan Kishan makes a comeback
Surely, if there was one question the selectors might have had in their minds, it was about Shubman Gill, and they have answered it well. Gill has been struggling to get runs in the T20I format, while other players are getting runs; one of them has to be Ishan Kishan. Just recently, he performed brilliantly in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2025 and was also the highest run-getter in the tournament with 517 runs in 10 matches. Kishan also scored a century in the final and helped Jharkhand win the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy for the first time.
Sanju Samson is also in the team, and he will most likely start the innings with Abhishek Sharma. Now, next, Suryakumar Yadav’s form is the question, as since the time he has been given the captaincy, the runs have not been in the greatest of form. Tilak Varma in the middle order will be key as he becomes one of the important batters in the team now.
Axar Patel is named as the vice-captain, and this means his place in the team is cemented along with Hardik Pandya. Pinku Singh is also back in the Indian team for the 2026 T20 World Cup. There are no surprises in the bowling department as India will most likely start Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav, and Varun Chakaravarthy. Basically, India will play their first match of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 on the 7th of February 2026, which is the third match on the first day of the competition. It will be against the United States of America, and the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai will be the venue.