Hardik Pandya to lead as we look at the best squad and players list for Team India for T20 World Cup 2026.
Post the conclusion of the T20 World Cup 2024, Team India will be beginning their new chapter with a focus on the 2026 World Cup. It’s sad to say, but 2024 will probably be the last time we are seeing Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli play for the India team in T20Is. The duo was supposed to retire in 2022 itself, but a last-minute change by the selectors helped the duo make a comeback.
With India starting a new chapter, we will also see the end of Rahul Dravid as the Head Coach of the Indian team. While the new Coach announcement has not been made, in all likelihood, we should see Gautam Gambhir taking over the Indian team as the Head Coach in all 3 formats. While he will not be there for the Zimbabwe tour, he will most-likely take over from the Sri Lanka series.
With the official end of the chapter for Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma along with a few more players for India in T20Is, all eyes will be on the future generation, and what players are going to take the T20 Team ahead. The current cues are too good for us given we should mostly see the T20 squad from the current T20 WC squad and the squad that has been selected for the Zimbabwe tour.
T20 World Cup 2026 Expectations?
Now, the T20 World Cup 2026 will be jointly held by India and Sri Lanka with the Final most-likely to be played in India. Of course, the World Cup is still two years away, and IPL 2025 and Bilaterals will play a huge role in Team selection. But looking at the current talent pool, let’s look at the best squad that Team India can select for the 2026 T20 World Cup.
Batters – Rinku Singh, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shubman Gill, Suryakumar Yadav & Yashasvi Jaiswal
Starting with the openers, this seems the easiest of the selection. With Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma not there, Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shubman Gill will most-likely be the default openers for the Indian team unless something goes horribly wrong. Both have been prolific openers in the Indian Premier League, and will get a lot of opportunities in the Indian team to prove their mettle.
With these two set to open, we should also see Ruturaj Gaikwad as the backup opener for the Indian team. Ruturaj, just like Yashasvi and Shubman has been scoring tons of runs in the Indian IPL. So, it makes sense to persist with Ruturaj, if not as an opener then at number 3. Other than these three, India may keep Abhishek Sharma and Ishan Kishan among the backups for now. Of course, if Abhishek keeps doing what he is doing right now, he can even make it to the final 15.
Talking about the other batters, India will definitely see Suryakumar Yadav as one of the front runners still. SKY has a lot of cricket left in him, and 2026 shouldn’t be an issue for him. Alongside SKY, Rinku Singh should definitely get an opportunity ahead of anyone in the upcoming T20 World Cup. It was quite unfortunate to see Rinku Singh missing the 2024 WC. But don’t think Indian management will make this mistake again of not selecting Rinku Singh.
WKs – Rishabh Pant & Sanju Samson
Talking about wicket-keepers, Rishabh Pant will definitely be in the squad as the primary wicket-keeper. Pant has been amazing so far in the 2024 T20 World Cup, and if he continues doing what he is doing, Pant will once again be the leading wicket-keeper for India. This also means Sanju Samson shall continue to remain as the backup keeper on the side.
All-rounders – Axar Patel & Hardik Pandya
Moving on the All-rounders, I feel, this is the last time, we are seeing Ravindra Jadeja as well as Shivam Dube in the side. While Jadeja has age issues by his side, and his form isn’t great either, Dube has been poor so far in the World Cup, and has nothing special to contribute. With these two not there, India will keep Hardin Pandya as the captain, and Axar Patel as the second all-rounder in the side.
If we talk about backups in the wicket-keeper as well as all-rounders Category, we will have Dhruv Jurel, Ishan Kishan, Abhishek Sharma, Nitish Reddy, and Washington Sundar. If at all players are not chosen from the 15 mentioned here, the Indian team will then move to the backups. There are definitely quality backups there, and it will be interesting to see how these players perform in the upcoming two years.
Bowlers – Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav, Mayank Yadav, Mohammed Shami & Ravi Bishnoi
Talking about the bowling, Jasprit Bumrah and Kuldeep Yadav should continue to Lead the pace bowling and spin bowling for India in 2026 as well. Apart from these two, Shami if fit, should be back in the squad. And for two more pacers, India should opt for Arshdeep Singh and Mayank Yadav. Mayank was the hottest property in IPL 2024, and if he maintains his fitness, he will be on Team India’s radar.
Finally, for the number 15 spot, India will have to decide whether to go with an additional spinner or an additional all-rounder. It is an open debatable topic with jo right answer. If India decide to opt for batting depth then Sundar becomes an automatic choice. But if India need a wicket-taker, then Bishnoi becomes an automatic choice. But overall, Bishnoi may be more useful for the Indian team as a good wrist spin option.
T20 World Cup 2026 – Best Squad List for Team India:
Batters: Rinku Singh, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shubman Gill, Suryakumar Yadav & Yashasvi Jaiswal
WKs: Rishabh Pant & Sanju Samson
All-rounders: Axar Patel & Hardik Pandya (c)
Bowlers: Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Burmah, Kuldeep Yadav, Mayank Yadav, Mohammed Shami & Ravi Bishnoi
Thanks for reading! What’s your take on T20 World Cup 2026 India squad and players list? Please share your thoughts to business@cricalytics.com
ALSO READ: India vs Zimbabwe 2024 T20 Series Confirmed Playing 11
© AK4Tsay1 Cricalytics Google News
Adesh Kothari is the founder of AK4Tsay1 Cricalytics with over 20 years of experience following Cricket.
Cricket to him is like what Football is to Lionel Messi, Singing is to Lata Mangeshkar, Dancing is to Michael Jackson, and Acting is to Clint Eastwood.
Besides his effervescent love for Cricket, Adesh is an MBA by qualification.
