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Revealed- Why Jitesh Sharma was dropped and Ishan Kishan replaced him in India's T20 WC squad?

Rajgeeta Yadav

Jitesh Sharma has been excluded [Source: AFP]Jitesh Sharma has been excluded [Source: AFP]

On Saturday, Team India announced their 15-member squad for the ICC T20 World Cup 2026, which will be held in India and Sri Lanka next year. The squad announcement included some big changes that surprised many fans.

One of the major changes was the exclusion of Shubman Gill, who was the vice-captain earlier. Along with him, wicketkeeper-batter Jitesh Sharma was also not selected for the squad.

Instead of Jitesh Sharma, the selectors chose Ishan Kishan, the captain of Jharkhand and the recent Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT) winner. Ishan had a fantastic tournament, scoring 517 runs in 10 matches at a very high strike rate of 197.33 and an average of 57.44. He also led his team to the title, showing strong leadership skills.

Ajit Agarkar explains why Jitesh Sharma has been replaced

During the squad announcement, BCCI chief selector Ajit Agarkar explained the reason behind Jitesh Sharma’s exclusion.

“Shubman was the vice-captain, he's not in the team. Axar was the vice-captain when the T20s used to clash. About continuity, you're looking at combinations. If your keeper is going to bat at the top, you want a keeper who can play there. Jitesh was there, Shubman is a quality player and unfortunate to miss out. Combinations more than anything else, two keepers at the top. Rinku comes who gives that lower middle order option," he said.

Notably, India have already selected Sanju Samson as their main wicketkeeper and opener, alongside Abhishek Sharma. In this setup, Ishan Kishan made more sense as a backup because he can also open the innings, making him a like-for-like replacement for Samson.

Although Jitesh Sharma performed well whenever he got chances, the team’s strategy change after dropping Shubman Gill meant there was no space for a middle-order wicketkeeper-batter in the final squad.

Rinku Singh has also been included in the team, as he adds strength to the lower middle order. This same squad will represent India in the upcoming T20I series against New Zealand, which begins on January 21.