5 India stars who will play T20 World Cup for first time

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Team India reveal their T20 World Cup 2026 squad featuring new faces, Axar Patel as vice-captain, and a fresh opening combination.

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Team India has announced its 15-player squad for the upcoming T20 World Cup 2026 which will be played in India and Sri Lanka. The team includes several new faces who will be playing in the World Cup for the first time. Axar Patel is named as vice-captain ahead of Shubman Gill, who has been excluded from the squad. The team also has two wicketkeeper-openers. Sanju Samson will be the first choice wicketkeeper-batter to open with Abhishek Sharma. Ishan Kishan will be the second wicketkeeper-opener. Five players who will be playing in the T20 World Cup for the first time:

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Abhishek Sharma: The swashbuckling opener will be playing in a World Cup for the first time. Sharma made his debut in the series against Zimbabwe immediately after the 2024 T20 World Cup. He struck a brilliant century on his debut. In 2025, he scored 1,602 runs in T20 cricket, coming very close to Virat Kohli's all-time India record (1,614 runs, 2016).

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Tilak Varma: Tilak Varma will also make his debut in next year's T20 World Cup. He has been one of India's star players recently and has become a vital cog in the Indian team. Tilak made his T20I debut in August 2023, but has become a regular for Team India since the 2025 Asia Cup.

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Rinku Singh: Rinku has been with the Indian team since mid-2023, but missed the 2024 World Cup. He was also dropped from the T20I series against South Africa, but has now returned to the squad.

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Washington Sundar: Washington Sundar is also in line to play his first World Cup after being included in the 15-member squad selected for the 2024 World Cup.

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Harshit Rana: Harshit has also been selected for the World Cup squad for the first time. Rana made his T20I debut earlier this year against England. He offers a batting option at number 9 and provides strength to the team with his fast bowling.