The national selection committee on Saturday omitted out-of-form vice-captain Shubman Gill from the 15-member Indian squad announced for the home T20 World Cup 2026, a decision chief selector Ajit Agarkar said was driven by the batter’s lack of runs.
The squad, led by Suryakumar Yadav, also marked the return of an in-form Ishan Kishan and Rinku Singh, while Axar Patel was named vice-captain.
Gill, who has struggled for consistency in recent months, was not only removed from the vice-captaincy but dropped from the squad altogether.
“Obviously, he (Gill) has been short of runs and since he wasn’t picked, we needed a vice-captain,” Agarkar said at the press conference.
Explaining the decision further, the chief selector added: “Shubman Gill is short of runs at the moment and missed last WC too.”
Agarkar stressed that Gill’s omission was not a reflection of his ability. “Your opinion could differ from mine. Sometimes when you pick players, it’s difficult. We still think he’s a quality player. You go through ups and downs with forms, but it’s more about the combinations you want them playing. Someone has to miss out, it’s not because he’s not a good player, and fortunately in Indian cricket we have options,” he said.
The selection panel opted for Sanju Samson as the first-choice wicketkeeper, with Kishan selected as the second keeper and reserve opener. Kishan last played a T20I for India more than two years ago and pipped Jitesh Sharma to the spot.
“When someone’s playing Tests and not playing T20s, you can’t say it’s for combinations. When Sanju and Tilak made those 100s in South Africa last year, the Test team were in Australia. You saw Sanju opening last night and that tells you what the thinking is. With picking a second wicketkeeper for the top,” Agarkar said while explaining Samson’s inclusion.
Rinku Singh, part of the Asia Cup-winning squad, made a comeback as the designated finisher, replacing Jitesh Sharma. Washington Sundar was also named in the squad.
Suryakumar, who will captain the side, confirmed the team’s settled batting order, particularly at the top. “We’ve come to a point, me and Gauti bhai and the other batters, lefty-righty is not what we’re looking for. It’s a little overrated. We’ve fixed number 3 for Tilak, 4 for myself, and then whoever is comfortable. We want to fix that role for Tilak so he knows what his role is and is happy in that position,” Suryakumar said.
Agarkar also addressed the exclusion of Yashasvi Jaiswal, who was part of the previous World Cup squad.
"We ask what everyone thinks is the best position. Is anyone compromised? There’s a quality player coming in. No one is talking about Jaiswal anymore and he was in the previous World Cup squad. Hopefully we get it right come the World Cup,” he said.
BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia confirmed that there will be no standby players for the T20 World Cup 2026 and the T20I series against New Zealand, as both tournaments will be played at home.
Reacting to Gill’s omission, former India captain Sunil Gavaskar said the decision was surprising. “The omission of Shubman Gill is a surprise. Class act, quality batter. I know he struggled for a few matches, but class always tells in the end. He was coming after a long lay-off and wasn’t in rhythm. When you have to go bang-bang, if your natural bent is to play along the ground, it doesn’t come easy. We’ve seen in the IPL he’s very good, so the lack of touch might have gone against him. I do hope Shubman takes it in the right spirit. I want the very best for him. Some of these injuries have been freakish,” Gavaskar said on Star Sports.
India have announced the same squad for the T20 World Cup 2026 and the T20I series against New Zealand. Apart from Gill and Jitesh Sharma, no other major surprises were sprung by the selection committee.
India’s squad for T20 World Cup 2026 and New Zealand T20Is: Suryakumar Yadav (captain), Axar Patel (vice-captain), Sanju Samson (wk), Ishan Kishan (wk), Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, Varun Chakravarthy, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Washington Sundar, Rinku Singh.