Harshit Rana ruled out of ICC T20 World Cup 2026, this player will take his place
Fast bowler Harshit Rana has been ruled out of the T20 World Cup 2026. He sustained a knee injury during a warm-up match against South Africa in Navi Mumbai on February 4. Following consultation with doctors and scans, the BCCI medical team declared him unfit for the tournament.
The BCCI drafted in veteran pacer Mohammed Siraj to the squad in Rana’s place. The 31-year-old Siraj, who has played 16 T20Is for India and taken 14 wickets, last made an appearance in the format against Sri Lanka back in 2024. Siraj has also played 45 Tests and 50 ODIs. He last played a T20 match on July 30, 2024, against Sri Lanka.
The tournament, being played in India and Sri Lanka, begins on February 7. Defending champions India will play their first match against the USA at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Saturday.
Indian squad for the T20 World Cup
Suryakumar Yadav (c), Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Ishan Kishan (wk), Sanju Samson (wk), Jasprit Bumrah, Varun Chakravarthy, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Rinku Singh, Washington Sundar.