The national selection committee, led by Ajit Agarkar, is likely to name identical squads for India’s five-match T20I series against New Zealand and the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup, a BCCI source confirmed on Friday.
While the schedule for the 20-team global tournament is yet to be announced, the tentative start date is February 7. ICC rules require teams to submit their final 15-member squad one month before the tournament begins. The selection committee will announce the squad with the option to make changes until a specified cut-off date.
The same process was followed in the 2024 edition held in the Americas, which India won under Rohit Sharma’s captaincy.
The New Zealand T20I series, scheduled from January 21 to 31, will be India’s final series before the T20 World Cup. Matches will be held in Nagpur (Jan 21), Raipur (Jan 23), Guwahati (Jan 25), Vizag (Jan 28), and Trivandrum (Jan 31).
“With only 10 T20Is left before the World Cup, you won’t see many changes to the squad unless a player is ruled out due to injury,” a source told PTI on condition of anonymity. “Continuity is key, and the 15 players chosen for the New Zealand series are likely to remain unchanged given the short turnaround time.”
The South Africa T20I series earlier is expected to be the final opportunity for Gautam Gambhir and Suryakumar Yadav to assess a few players ahead of the New Zealand rubber, which will effectively act as a dress rehearsal for the marquee tournament.
While injury-forced changes remain unavoidable, the selection panel is unlikely to tinker with the squad, learning from past experience. During the Champions Trophy in Dubai earlier this year, Yashasvi Jaiswal was initially named in the 15-member squad but was later replaced by Varun Chakravarthy to suit local conditions. Jaiswal was eventually dropped after being selected in the original squad—a precedent the committee is keen to avoid repeating.
(By PTI Inputs)
