New Delhi: India’s selectors have made a major change to the T20I setup by appointing Shreyas Iyer as the new captain for the upcoming tours of Ireland and England. Iyer replaces Suryakumar Yadav, who has been left out of the squad despite leading India to a T20 World Cup triumph earlier this year.
In another notable development, teenage batting sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi has received his first senior national team call-up following an impressive IPL 2026 campaign. Meanwhile, Tilak Varma has been appointed vice-captain.
Fast bowler Prince Yadav has also earned his maiden T20I selection after previously being included in India’s ODI squad for the Afghanistan series.
Iyer’s return marks a remarkable comeback. The top-order batter last featured in a T20I in December 2023 and spent much of this year on the sidelines despite being part of the squad for the home series against New Zealand. Strong performances in domestic cricket and the IPL, both as a batter and captain, have helped him reclaim a place in the national side and secure the leadership role.
Among the notable omissions are all-rounder Hardik Pandya, who recently dealt with a back spasm, leg-spinner Kuldeep Yadav and pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah, who has been rested for the tour.
Fast bowler Mohammed Siraj has retained his place after a strong IPL season, while Harshit Rana returns after recovering from a knee injury. Spinner Ravi Bishnoi has also been included.
India will begin the tour with two T20Is against Ireland on June 26 and 28 before taking on England in a five-match T20I series starting July 1.
India T20I Squad: Shreyas Iyer (captain), Tilak Varma (vice-captain), Sanju Samson, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Shivam Dube, Arshdeep Singh, Prince Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Varun Chakaravarthy, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Harshit Rana and Ravi Bishnoi.
