Shubman Gill IN, Yashasvi Jaiswal & Rinku Singh out, India's strongest squad for the T20 World Cup 2026

The 2026 edition of the ICC 20-20 World Cup will be jointly hosted by India and Sri Lanka next year. Under the leadership of Rohit Sharma, Team India lifted the World Cup in 2024 and now the team led by Suryakumar Yadav has the challenge of retaining this title on home soil. The selection committee for this World Cup tournament will meet on Saturday. The meeting will be held on the day after the conclusion of the last Twenty20 match between India and South Africa (December 20).

Before the Twenty20 World Cup, India has one more Twenty20 series to play and they will face New Zealand. The five-match series will be played from January 21 to 31, 2026, after which both teams will compete in the Twenty20 World Cup. This big tournament will be played from February 7 to March 8, 2026.

Reigning champions India have performed strongly in T20Is under Surya's leadership since the 2024 World Cup. They have won 30 out of 34 matches and lost only 4. Two of those matches were played in the Super Over, while the two matches against Australia were cancelled. Looking at this consistency of the Indian team, it does not seem that there will be any experiment for the World Cup. Therefore, the team that is playing now will have the same players in the World Cup as well.

Shubman Gill's return as vice-captain to the shortest format of the game has not convinced many. He has only been able to score 291 runs in 15 matches. At the same time, Surya also seems to have failed. This year, he has scored only 213 runs in 20 matches at an average of 14.20. But, his place is secure. Abhishek Sharma and Gill will open, which means Yashasvi Jaiswal will not get a chance. While Sanju Samson will be in the team as a reserve opener, Jitesh Sharma will be kept as an option for wicketkeeper.

Tilak Verma, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel and Washington Sundar are also confirmed in the team. Rinku Singh was dropped from the series against Africa and has played only two matches since the Asia Cup. Therefore, he will miss two consecutive World Cups. Although the team is missing a finisher after Hardik, it is difficult for Rinku to get a chance.

Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav, Varun Chakravarthy, Arshdeep Singh are the four key players in the bowling department. Head coach Gautam Gambhir has full faith in Harshit Rana, so he will definitely be in the team.

India's probable squad - Suryakumar Yadav (captain), Shubman Gill (vice-captain), Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Verma, Jitesh Sharma, Axar Patel, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Sanju Samson, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Varun Chakravarthy, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, Harshit Rana.

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