The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) officially announced India’s 15-member squad for the T20 World Cup 2026 on December 20, which came with surprise inclusions and exclusions. Most notably, Shubman Gill has been dropped from the team, ending his tenure as the T20I vice-captain. Even wicketkeeper-batter Jitesh Sharma was omitted to make room for the return of Ishan Kishan. The squad also sees the return of Rinku Singh, who had been left out of the previous South Africa series, while Axar Patel returns from injury to assume the role of vice-captain.
BCCI reveals India's squad for T20 World Cup, New Zealand T20Is
In a departure from tradition, the selection committee opted not to name any standby players for the tournament. This decision raised eyebrows, as the BCCI typically designates backup players for major ICC events and continental trophies, such as the 2022 and 2025 Asia Cups. However, this year’s list remains strictly limited to the primary 15-man squad.
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No standby players in India's squad
Addressing this unusual move, BCCI Secretary Devajit Saikia explained to the press that the decision was based on logistics. Since India is co-hosting the tournament, the board feels they can easily replace an injured player at any moment without needing a pre-designated traveling party of reserves.
"There are no standbys since the whole tournament is happening in the country and we can replace any player at any point in time," BCCI secretary said at the press conference on December 20.
The 2026 T20 World Cup will be hosted jointly by India and Sri Lanka. While the majority of their campaign will be at home, the Men in Blue are scheduled to travel to Sri Lanka for their high-stakes league match against Pakistan. Due to logistical and political reasons, Pakistan is slated to play all of their matches on Sri Lankan soil.
India's roster for T20 World Cup 2026
Defending champions India are set to begin their 2026 T20 World Cup title defense on home soil, facing the USA at the iconic Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on February 7. Following the opener, the team will travel to New Delhi to take on Namibia at the Arun Jaitley Stadium on February 12. The tournament’s most anticipated clash will take place on February 15, when India meets arch-rivals Pakistan at the R. Premadasa Stadium in Colombo. India will then conclude their league stage campaign on February 18 against the Netherlands at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. The knockout rounds are scheduled for early March, with the two semi-finals taking place on March 4 and 5. The biennial event will reach its climax on March 8 with a grand final.
India's squad for T20 World Cup 2026 and T20I series against New Zealand
Suryakumar Yadav (c), Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel (vc), Ishan Kishan (wk), Sanju Samson (wk), Jasprit Bumrah, Varun Chakravarthy, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Rinku Singh, Washington Sundar