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Tilak Varma ruled out of first 3 NZ T20Is in fresh blow for India before World Cup 2026

Aakash Saini

Tilak Varma [Source: @TilakV9/x]Tilak Varma [Source: @TilakV9/x]

India’s middle-order resolute Tilak Varma has been ruled out of the first three T20Is of the upcoming five-match home series against New Zealand. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) confirmed the development on Thursday, January 8.

It is worth noting that Tilak Varma underwent emergency surgery for an abdominal issue in Rajkot a day earlier on January 7, at the time when he was with his domestic team Hyderabad preparing for a Vijay Hazare Trophy 2025-26 match.

Tilak Varma to miss three T20Is vs NZ, availability to assessed

On Thursday, January 8; the BCCI confirmed that Tilak Varma has been ruled out of Team India squad for the first three matches of the upcoming five-match T20I series, slated to be played between January 21 and January 31 later this month. In a media release, the BCCI also added that while the cricketer underwent an emergency surgery for an abdominal issue in Rajkot amidst the ongoing 2025-26 Vijay Hazare Trophy, the 23-year-old has now been discharged from the hospital.

The cricketer is currently scheduled to fly back to his home town in Hyderabad on Friday, January 9. The media release further stated that Tilak Varma is “stable and recovering well”.

In terms of his return to competitive cricket just ahead of the 2026 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, the BCCI added that Tilak Varma will be expected to resume physical training once all his symptoms have “fully resolved”.

While Tilak Varma is ruled out of the first three T20Is against New Zealand, his availability for the final two games of the series will be assessed by the BCCI based on his recovery progress.

Quite recently, the cricketer himself teased his return with a hopeful update on social media, claiming that he is already on a road to recovery and he will be making his way back to the field “sooner than” expected.