It’s done. It’s sealed. Shreyas Iyer is the next India T20I captain. The right-handed batter who recently led Punjab Kings in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 edition will replace Suryakumar Yadav as the skipper in the shortest format, and the official announcement will be made on Saturday, when the selection committee convenes to pick the squad for the upcoming assignments against Ireland and England. Sources privy to developments confirmed to Hindustan Times Digital that Shreyas will indeed be the next T20I captain.
It is going to be a double whammy for Suryakumar. The 35-year-old, who recently led India to a T20 World Cup title earlier this year, is all set to be on his way out and won’t be picked for the upcoming UK tour. It has also been reliably learnt that Tilak Varma, in all probability, would be Shreyas’ deputy in the T20 format. Shreyas hasn’t played a T20I for India since December 2023, and his first match back in the format will be as captain.
With Suryakumar removed as the captain, this marks the second year in a row that India has ousted a title-winning skipper. Last year, just a few months after winning the Champions Trophy, India replaced Rohit Sharma with Shubman Gill as the ODI captain.
The fact that the Ajit Agarkar-led selection committee went with Shreyas doesn’t come as a surprise. The 31-year-old boasts of a solid resume as the skipper. He first led the Delhi Capitals to their first-ever IPL final in 2020, and followed it up with a title win for the Kolkata Knight Riders in 2024.
Moreover, he then took charge of the Punjab Kings, leading the franchise to its first final in 11 years. The IPL 2026 season went south for the PBKS, but the selectors rewarded Shreyas’s consistency as captain. Not just leadership, Shreyas also let his bat do all the talking, scoring more than 600 runs in the IPL 2025 season.
This year, the right-hander smashed 498 runs at a strike rate of 168.81, including a century against the Lucknow Super Giants. Shreyas’ rise in stature both as a captain and batter coincided with Suryakumar’s dip in form.
The 35-year-old led India to a T20 World Cup trophy and never lost a bilateral series, but his bat remained quiet for the majority of his tenure as captain. In 2025, the experienced campaigner failed to hit a single fifty for India and in the World Cup, he returned with just 242 runs across 9 innings at a strike rate of 136.72. This return was followed up with another slump in the IPL, where he scored 270 runs in 13 innings for the Mumbai Indians at an average of 20.76 and a strike rate of 147.54.
Suryakumar’s form is showing no signs of improving. The batter has so far played two matches for the Triumphs Knights MNE in the Mumbai T20 league, scoring 19 and 4.
Vaibhav Sooryavanshi factor
Meanwhile, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, the 15-year-old, is all set to be named in India’s squad for the two T20Is against Ireland. Whether he makes the squad for the England matches remains to be seen. The Rajasthan Royals’ opening batter will become the youngest-ever to be picked in an Indian squad.
Sooryavanshi smashed 776 runs in the IPL 2026 for the Royals at a strike rate of 237.31. He won multiple awards, including the Orange Cap and the Most Valuable Player award. However, before the series against Ireland, the left-hander will be seen in action for India A in the tri-series against Sri Lanka A and Afghanistan A, beginning June 9.
The two T20Is between India and Ireland will be played in Belfast on June 26 and 28, followed by five T20Is in England from July 1 to 11.
