Team India announced their squad for the upcoming ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026, with Suryakumar Yadav leading the power-packed 15-man line-up. The event
is less than a couple of months away, and the Indian team made a huge change by renaming all-rounder Axar Patel as the vice-captain, with the co-hosts starting their campaign with a Group A clash against the United States of America on February 7 in Mumbai.
Ishan Kishan and Rinku Singh — the two attacking left-handed batters made a surprise comeback to the squad. Ishan is coming on the back of a brilliant campaign as the captain of Jharkhand, as they won the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2025. Kishan also topped the charts with 517 runs Meanwhile, a few names have also been unlucky, as the incoming namesT20 World Cup 2026: Top 3 shocking exclusions from India squadT20 World Cup 2026: Top 3 shocking exclusions from India squad meant that some had to see themselves being ignored by the BCCI.
Here are 3 shocking exclusions from India's T20 World Cup squad
3. Nitish Kumar Reddy
Nitish Kumar Reddy announced himself in the Indian team with a bang, smashing 74 off just 34 balls in his debut T20I series. While his stay has been very limited in the shortest format of the game, he has proven himself a lot of impactful performances in the little opportunities that he has had. However, India's middle-order is packed with proven batters.
The 22-year-old is also a very handy bowling option, and can bowl crucial middle overs, providing breakthroughs at will. However, the presence of senior fast-bowling all-rounders — Hardik Pandya and Shivam Dube, meant that Reddy has to wait for his time, as he will continue to toil in the domestic circuit. If picked, though, he would have been nothing but an asset for the side.
2. Jitesh Sharma
Wicketkeeper-batter Jitesh Sharma hasn't had very meaningful opportunities to prove his worth as a finisher for the Indian team. However, he is an excellent person behind the wickets with gloves in his hands. He was also kept as the primary wicketkeeper in the squad, over a much experienced Sanju Samson, that being a strong indication of his prowess.
However, a last-minute inclusion of Ishan Kishan means that the Amravati-born will only be watching his colleagues perform from the sidelines. Jitesh has played some brilliant knocks for Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the IPL 2025, also captaining them in absence of Rajat Patidar, as the franchise lifted their first-ever title. Jitesh is yet another player to be missing out.
1. Shubman Gill
Shubman Gill made a surprise comeback into the Indian T20 team, after he was not only given the preference to open over Samson, but also be the vice-captain of the side. However, he failed to rise to the occasion in the Asia Cup, and the bad form just followed in Australia and at home against South Africa, as he continued to showcase dismal outings with the bat.
Shubman scored only 32 runs throughout the series against the Proteas, and doesn't even have a single fifty-plus score in all the fifteen innings he has played in 2025, averaging a mere 24.25. As a result, the management had to move on from Gill, and tilt their focus yet again on Samson, who will now be seen opening alongside Abhishek Sharma.
