Shreyas Iyer Returns to T20 Squad After 25 Months

• By Thetripurapost Desk, Mumbai
• Jan 16, 2026
• 595

Indian ODI vice-captain Shreyas Iyer has made his return to the T20 International squad after a gap of 25 months. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced the replacement players on Friday ahead of India’s five-match T20 series against New Zealand.

The 31-year-old Iyer has been named in place of Tilak Varma and will be available for the first three T20Is only. Ravi Bishnoi has also been added to the squad, replacing Washington Sundar, who has been ruled out due to injury.

India will begin the T20 series against New Zealand on January 21 in Nagpur as part of preparations for the upcoming T20 World Cup.

Shreyas Iyer last played a T20I in December 2023 against Australia in Bengaluru, where he scored 53 runs off 37 balls in a six-wicket victory. Overall, he has featured in 51 T20 Internationals, scoring 1,104 runs, including eight half-centuries.

Iyer had suffered an injury during the third ODI against Australia on October 25 last year and made his return to international cricket in the first ODI against New Zealand on January 11.

Meanwhile, Washington Sundar sustained a side strain after experiencing pain near his lower ribs while bowling in the first ODI at the BCA Stadium in Vadodara. Medical scans confirmed the injury, and he has been advised to rest before reporting to the BCCI Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru for further treatment.

India’s Updated T20 Squad vs New Zealand

• Captain: Suryakumar Yadav

• Vice-captain: Axar Patel

• Abhishek Sharma

• Sanju Samson (wicketkeeper)

• Shreyas Iyer (first three T20Is)

• Hardik Pandya

• Shivam Dube

• Rinku Singh

• Jasprit Bumrah

• Harshit Rana

• Arshdeep Singh

• Kuldeep Yadav

• Varun Chakravarthy

• Ishan Kishan (wicketkeeper)

• Ravi Bishnoi