Shreyas appointed India T20I captain, Sooryavanshi earns maiden call-up

By Cricketing Country | Posted Posted Jun 06, 2026

Shreyas Iyer has been named India's new T20I captain for the upcoming tours of Ireland and England, along with upcoming Asian Games.

Teenage sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi has also received his maiden call-up to the national side.

The selectors have opted to move on from World Cup-winning skipper Suryakumar Yadav following his recent struggles with the bat. Suryakumar has been left out of the squad altogether.

Tilak Varma has been appointed vice-captain, while fast bowler Harshit Rana returns after recovering from a knee injury that ruled him out of the 2026 T20 World Cup.

Although Iyer has not played a T20I since December 2023, his leadership credentials and batting form have made him the obvious choice.

The 31-year-old guided Kolkata Knight Riders to the IPL title in 2024 and led Punjab Kings to the final in 2025. He also enjoyed two productive IPL seasons with the bat, including a century in his final game of IPL 2026.

The biggest headline, however, is the selection of 15-year-old Sooryavanshi. After a record-breaking IPL 2026 campaign in which he scored 776 runs at a strike rate of 237.31 and smashed a tournament-record 72 sixes, the teenager earned the Orange Cap, Emerging Player award and MVP honours.

India will begin the assignment with two T20Is against Ireland in Belfast on June 26 and 28 before travelling to England for a five-match series from July 1 to 11.

India T20I squad for Ireland and England series : Shreyas Iyer (C), Tilak Varma (VC), Ravi Bishnoi, Abhishek Sharma, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Mohammed Siraj, Sanju Samson, Axar Patel, Harshit Rana, Ishan Kishan, Washington Sundar, Arshdeep Singh, Shivam Dube, Varun Chakaravarthy, Prince Yadav and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi.

India squad for Asian Games : Shreyas Iyer (C), Tilak Varma (VC), Ravi Bishnoi, Abhishek Sharma, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Jasprit Bumrah, Sanju Samson, Axar Patel, Harshit Rana, Ishan Kishan, Washington Sundar, Arshdeep Singh, Shivam Dube, Varun Chakaravarthy, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi