India's T20 World Cup squad: Shubman Gill axed in brutal call; old vice-captain returns; Ishan Kishan, Rinku Singh back

India's T20 World Cup squad: Ajit Agarkar announces 15-member squad. Shubman Gill dropped from the main squad.

India's T20 World Cup squad was announced on Saturday afternoon, where the Ajit Agarkar-led selection committee made a ruthless and shocking call, dropping Shubman Gill from the 15-member squad. Axar Patel will serve as Suryakumar Yadav's deputy in the upcoming 20-team tournament, set to begin on February 7. Besides Gill, Jitesh Sharma's omission emerged as another talking point after Ishan Kishan got the nod ahead of him as the backup wicketkeeper, owing to strong performances in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, where he led Jharkhand to the title win and scored more than 500 runs.

Shubman Gill dropped from the squad for the T20 World Cup (HT_PRINT)

No one expected selectors Agarkar, SS Das, Ajay Ratra, RP Singh, and Pragyan Ojha, along with captain Suryakumar Yadav, to pull off a surprise this close to the World Cup, but as the flagbearers of Indian cricket, they did what they had to, prioritising the team ahead of individuals. Gill has been struggling with poor form lately in T20Is, as runs have simply not been coming. He did not even hit a single half-century in 2025, leading to significant concerns about his declining returns. With Gill out of the squad, it is now safe to say that Sanju Samson will open the batting with Abhishek Sharma. Recently, the Kerala-based batter played the last T20I against South Africa in the absence of injured Gill, scoring 37 runs off 22 balls.

Agarkar, the chairman of selectors, confirmed the 15-member squad in front of the media at the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) headquarters in Mumbai on Saturday. Suryakumar, who is yet to lose a T20I series as the captain, will be leading the side in the 20-team tournament as he looks to follow the footsteps of MS Dhoni and Rohit Sharma and help India win the silverware for a third time.

With Gill and Jitesh snubbed, Rinku Singh has also been recalled to the World Cup squad. It is worth mentioning that he was part of the Asia Cup-winning squad, and even hit the winning runs against Pakistan in the final, but was surprisingly dropped from the team for the South Africa series. India's T20 World Cup squad will get some much-needed game time when they take on New Zealand in a five-match series starting January 21, prior to the start of the tournament on February 7

Axar, who was ruled out of the last three T20Is due to an illness, has recovered and hence is named in the squad for the World Cup. He will now have additional responsibilities, as he will serve as the vice-captain. India have also opted to go in with four spinners in the squad - Axar, Kuldeep Yadav, Varun Chakaravarthy and Washington Sundar.

How many pacers?

Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh and Harshit Rana are the three frontline pacers included in the squad, with Hardik Pandya and Shivam Dube to get some more overs in. The T20 World Cup 2026 is scheduled to take place from February 7 to March 8 in India and Sri Lanka. India will begin their title defence on the opening day when they take on the United States at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. India are placed in Group A alongside Namibia, Pakistan, the Netherlands and the United States. The marquee match between India and Pakistan will be played on Sunday, February 15, in Colombo.

No host nation has ever won the T20 World Cup, and it remains to be seen whether India can manage to script history by winning the tournament on home soil. The selection committee have also not named any standbys for the tournament. “The whole tournament will be played in our country so all players will be ready. We don't have any standbys for now,” said the BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia.

India's squad for the T20 World Cup 2026 and five T20Is against New Zealand: Suryakumar Yadav (captain), Axar Patel (vice-captain), Sanju Samson, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Rinku Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, Varun Chakaravarthy, Washington Sundar, and Ishan Kishan.