India has ushered in a new era in T20 international cricket by appointing Shreyas Iyer as captain for the upcoming tours of Ireland and England, while handing a maiden national call-up to 15-year-old batting sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi.
The selectors announced the squad as they begin planning for the 2028 T20 World Cup and cricket’s return to the Olympic Games at the Los Angeles Olympics.
The biggest surprise was the omission of former captain Suryakumar Yadav, who led India to a successful defence of the T20 World Cup title in March. The 35-year-old has lost his place following a difficult period in international and franchise cricket.
Suryakumar scored 242 runs in nine innings during the 2026 T20 World Cup at a strike rate of 136.72. He then struggled in IPL 2026, managing only 270 runs in 13 innings at an average of 20.76 and a strike rate of 147.54.
India also rested senior stars Hardik Pandya and Jasprit Bumrah for the tour.
Shreyas Returns to Lead New-Look Side
The appointment marks a remarkable comeback for Shreyas Iyer, who has not played a T20 international since December 2023.
India struggled to find a place for him in the shortest format because Suryakumar Yadav and Tilak Varma occupied key middle-order positions. Although selectors picked him as an injury replacement during the home T20I series against New Zealand in January, he did not feature in a match.
However, Shreyas strengthened his case with consistent performances and impressive leadership in the IPL.
The 31-year-old guided Kolkata Knight Riders to the IPL title in 2024. He also led Delhi Capitals to the final in 2020 and Punjab Kings to the title match in 2025.
His batting numbers have remained equally impressive. Shreyas scored 604 runs at a strike rate of 175.07 in IPL 2025. He followed that with 498 runs at a strike rate of 168.81 during IPL 2026.
Selectors rewarded that consistency by handing him the captaincy for India’s next phase in T20 cricket.
Sooryavanshi Continues Meteoric Rise
The selection of Vaibhav Sooryavanshi has generated enormous excitement across Indian cricket.
At 15, he becomes the youngest player named in an India men’s squad since Sachin Tendulkar made his international breakthrough in the late 1980s.
The teenager forced his way into contention after a remarkable IPL season. He amassed 776 runs at a staggering strike rate of 237.30 and emerged as one of the tournament’s biggest stories.
Before joining the senior squad, Sooryavanshi will represent India A in a tri-series in Sri Lanka featuring Afghanistan and the hosts from June 9 to June 21.
The T20I tour begins with two matches against Ireland in Belfast on June 26 and June 28. India will then travel to England for a five-match series running from July 1 to July 11.
The squad also includes Nitish Kumar Reddy, Ravi Bishnoi and Prince Yadav, while Rinku Singh and Kuldeep Yadav miss out despite being part of India’s recent T20 World Cup-winning setup.
India T20I Squad: Shreyas Iyer (captain), Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson, Ishan Kishan, Shivam Dube, Tilak Varma (vice-captain), Nitish Kumar Reddy, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Varun Chakravarthy, Ravi Bishnoi, Mohammed Siraj, Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh and Prince Yadav.
