T20 World Cup 2026: 4 players who could make it into India's squad

The 15-man Indian squad for the ICC T20 World Cup 2026 is set to be announced on Saturday, December 20.

India Cricket Team’s ICC T20 World Cup title defense on home conditions will face its first litmus test on December 20, as the squad is set to be selected. However, plenty of questions are yet to be answered, with forms of star players like Shubman Gill and India’s captain Suryakumar Yadav currently on a downward spiral.

The biggest challenge for India is their hunt for a wicket keeper. With Samson not opening anymore, team balance gets disturbed which leads to the unfortunate exclusion of quality players.

Today, we look at four such players who might be in contention for a potential comeback into the Indian team for the ICC T20I World Cup 2026.

Four players who can break into India’s T20 World Cup 2026 squad

4. Mohammed Siraj

India’s pace attack largely relies on Jasprit Bumrah and Arshdeep Singh. While Hardik Pandya has proven to be reliable seamer option, questions linger over Harshit Rana’s position, with many alleging coach Gautam Gambhir’s favouratism which has ensured Kolkata Knight Riders’s (KKR) fast bowler find his spot in the 15-man squad.

Mohammed Siraj has been out of India’s T20 squad for some time now, but was part of the title winning 15 in Barbados last year. Siraj had a decent Indian Premier League (IPL) debut stint with the Gujarat Titans (GT) in 2024, taking 16 wickets

Arshdeep has certainly pipped Siraj for the second fast bowling option, but with Rana not being reliabl option, Siraj might be back in the squads for upcoming ICC T20 World Cup 2026.

Ishan Kishan

In the absence of any reliable wicket keeper option, Ishan Kishan might be a contender for a surprise call-up. Sanju Samson has fallen off the radar with Gill replacing him at the top, leaving Jitesh Sharma as the only other keeper option. However Jitesh has not done much to justify his position in the middle order either.

Kishan played an instrumental role in helping Jharkhand win the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, scoring 517 runs, including a 45-ball century in the finals.

Yashasvi Jaiswal

An extremely unfair exclusion in Indian T20I team was that of Yashasvi Jaiswal, who was left out for no reason. Indian selectors continued to place their hopes on Shubman Gill, and with Abhishek Sharma’s explosiveness, Jaiswal was left out mainly due to competitiveness and balance.

With Samson’s place not fixed, and Gill’s poor form at the recently concluded SA T20I series, the need for another opening batter in the form of Jaiswal looks to be on the cards.

Rinku Singh

India’s vulnerable middle order batting worries could be answered by the inclusion of Rinku Singh. Shivam Dube and Jitesh Sharma haven’t been consistent enough, there has been an over-reliance on Hardik Pandya.

Meanwhile, Rinku has a stellar resume in the format, scoring 550 runs in 25 innings at a strike rate of 162. Rinku’s exclusion has not impressed fans, but the question to be answered is, how he fits in the playing 11.

However, with Washington Sundar not contributing much with bat or ball, a direct swap between Rinku and Sundar could be on the cards.

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