The BCCI on Monday named a 15-member squad for India’s upcoming three-match T20I series against Zimbabwe, with Sanju Samson missing out and 15-year-old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi retaining his place.
After making his international debut against England. Rinku Singh, meanwhile, has earned a recall to the T20I setup. The Ajit Agarkar-led senior selection committee did not clarify whether Samson had been rested or dropped. The wicketkeeper-batter’s omission comes shortly after he lost his place in India’s playing XI during the ongoing England series to accommodate Sooryavanshi.
Samson, who was named Player of the Tournament in India’s triumphant T20 World Cup campaign earlier this year, endured a disappointing tour of the UK, managing just six runs across three T20Is against Ireland and England.
Shreyas Iyer will continue to lead the side, with Tilak Varma named vice-captain. The selectors have chosen Prabhsimran Singh as the reserve wicketkeeper alongside Ishan Kishan, signalling a change in the pecking order behind the stumps.
The batting core remains largely intact, with Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Ishan Kishan and Sooryavanshi all retaining their places. The selectors have also resisted fielding a second-string side, instead opting to give a relatively settled group more game time.
Rinku returns to the T20I squad for the first time since India’s T20 World Cup triumph. The left-hander missed the tour of Ireland and England after an inconsistent run in international cricket but finished IPL 2026 strongly for Kolkata Knight Riders.
Hardik Pandya continues to miss out as he recovers from injury at the BCCI’s Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru. Nitish Kumar Reddy is also unavailable due to injury.
Among the bowlers, Arshdeep Singh and Harshit Rana have been rested. Rajasthan pacer Ashok Sharma has received his maiden India call-up after impressing in his debut IPL season with Gujarat Titans, while Prince Yadav, Mayank Yadav and Yash Thakur complete the pace attack.
Varun Chakravarthy will lead the spin unit alongside left-arm spinner Harsh Dubey, with Ravi Bishnoi and Washington Sundar omitted from the squad.
India squad for Zimbabwe T20Is: Shreyas Iyer (captain), Tilak Varma (vice-captain), Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan (wk), Prabhsimran Singh (wk), Shivam Dube, Suryansh Shedge, Rinku Singh, Harsh Dubey, Varun Chakravarthy, Prince Yadav, Yash Thakur, Ashok Sharma and Mayank Yadav.
India will play the three-match T20I series in Harare from July 23 to July 26 after concluding their ongoing tour of England.
Comments are closed.