T20 World Cup 2026: 3 Players who can replace Tilak Varma in the India squad

According to several media sources, Tilak Varma is set to miss the forthcoming T20I series against New Zealand due to an injury.  

He was hit in his neighboring territory while playing for Hyderabad versus Saurashtra in the ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy 2025-26 match. He was in severe discomfort and was brought to a nearby hospital, where physicians decided to operate on Tilak.

Following surgery, the reports were shared with BCCI CoE doctors, who reportedly informed them that Tilak will be out of play for 6-8 weeks to recover from the procedure. Now there have been reports that Tilak might also miss the T20 World Cup 2026, and we look at 3 possible players who can replace him.

Here are the 3 players who can replace Tilak Varma in the India squad for the T20 World Cup 2026:

1. Shubman Gill

Shubman Gill was a big miss from the Indian squad for the T20 World Cup 2026. Gill had made his return to India’s T20I squad ahead of the Asia Cup 2025 and continued to open the innings for 15 games. However, he managed only 291 runs and failed to make a single fifty.

Despite being backed to the hilt, he was left out of the New Zealand T20Is and T20 World Cup squad. But it remains to be seen whether Shubman Gill might be included, and it’ll depend on his form in the upcoming New Zealand ODI series.

2. Yashasvi Jaiswal

Yashasvi Jaiswal might be the outside choice, as India already has two openers in Sanju Samson and Ishan Kishan in its T20 World Cup 2026 squad. Jaiswal has been in good form across the formats for India, having scored a century against South Africa in the recent ODIs.

He is one of the few Indians to score centuries in all three formats of international cricket. Yashasvi Jaiswal, despite being an opener, can bat at no. 3, a spot where Tilak Varma bats for the Indian team in T20Is. Jaiswal is capable of playing anchor and also going berserk if needed and can be the best replacement.

3. Shreyas Iyer

Shreyas Iyer has not played a T20I for India since December 2023. He was out of action for India in 2024 owing to his back injury and then the BCCI contract ban. He returned to cricket in 2025 against England and played a good role in India’s Champions Trophy win. He then captained Punjab Kings to the IPL 2025 final while leading the run-scoring charts for the team.

Iyer was a huge name to miss out on India’s T20I series post the IPL 2025 tournament. He was looking primed to be picked in India’s T20I squad, as he focused only on white-ball formats. However, Iyer suffered a spleen injury on the Australia tour and has made his return for Mumbai in the domestic 50-over tourney. He is a great batter in T20s, to consolidate innings and then accelerate.

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