India Selectors to Decide T20I Captaincy as Squads for Ireland, England Tours Loom
New Delhi — India’s senior national selection committee is set to meet at the BCCI headquarters in Mumbai on Saturday to finalize squads for the upcoming T20I tours of Ireland and England, with the future of the T20I captaincy expected to dominate discussions.
The Ajit Agarkar-led panel will name squads for two T20Is in Ireland on June 26 and 28, followed by a five-match T20I series in England from July 1 to 11. Agarkar and BCCI Secretary Devajit Saikia are scheduled to address a press conference at 1 p.m. after the meeting.
The selectors are also expected to pick India’s “A” squad for a red-ball series against Sri Lanka from June 25 to July 5 and release a shortlist of players for the men’s T20 event at the Asian Games in Nagoya, Japan.
The biggest question surrounds Suryakumar Yadav’s future as T20I captain. Suryakumar led India to a successful defense of the men’s T20 World Cup title in March but has struggled for form in recent months.
He scored 270 runs in 13 innings for Mumbai Indians in the 2026 Indian Premier League, averaging 20.76 with a strike rate of 147.54. In the World Cup, he made 242 runs in nine innings at a strike rate of 136.72. With Suryakumar set to turn 36 in September, selectors are expected to weigh whether he should retain the captaincy or remain in the squad.
Shreyas Iyer is among the leading candidates to succeed him. Iyer led Kolkata Knight Riders to the IPL title in 2024 and previously guided Delhi Capitals and Punjab Kings to IPL finals in 2020 and 2025, respectively. He also captained Mumbai to the 2024-25 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy title.
If selected as India’s next men’s T20I captain, Iyer would become the country’s 15th player to lead the team in the format. He is currently India’s ODI vice captain but was not part of the T20I setup for the previous World Cup cycle, though he returned earlier this year for the series against New Zealand as an injury replacement for Tilak Varma.
Hardik Pandya is another leadership option, though he is currently working on his fitness at the BCCI Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru after back spasms affected him during IPL 2026. Pandya has previously captained India in 16 T20Is.
Ishan Kishan, Tilak Varma and Sanju Samson are also expected to be discussed as possible leadership or vice-captaincy options.
The selectors may also consider teenage batting prospect Vaibhav Sooryavanshi and two-time IPL-winning captain Rajat Patidar after strong IPL 2026 campaigns. However, fitting them into a top order that already includes Samson, Abhishek Sharma and Kishan could be a challenge.
For the India “A” red-ball squad, selectors may look to include senior players ahead of India’s two-Test series in Sri Lanka in August. The shadow tour could help players adjust to spin-friendly conditions and the red Kookaburra ball.
KL Rahul, Devdutt Padikkal, B Sai Sudharsan, Rishabh Pant, Washington Sundar and Ravindra Jadeja could be considered for the “A” squad, especially with matches expected to be played in Galle, a regular Test venue in Sri Lanka.
Fast-bowling all-rounder Auqib Nabi, who took 60 wickets for Jammu and Kashmir during their Ranji Trophy-winning season earlier this year, could also be considered after missing out on selection for the Afghanistan Test.
Saturday’s meeting is expected to shape India’s plans across formats, with major decisions due on T20I leadership, squad balance and red-ball preparation for a crucial stretch of international cricket. (Source: IANS)
