Shreyas Iyer to stay as Tilak Varma’s replacement for remainder of T20I matches against New Zealand

New Delhi: Star India cricket Shreyas Iyer will continue to be part of the Men in Blue as Tilak Varma’s Replacement for remainder of T20I matches.

India batter Tilak Varma has resumed physical training and is steadily progressing with his rehabilitation at the BCCI’s Centre of Excellence. However, he will need additional time to regain full match fitness and will miss the final two T20Is of the ongoing IDFC First Bank five-match series against New Zealand.

“India batter Tilak Varma has resumed physical training and is making steady progress with his rehabilitation at the BCCI Centre of Excellence. However, he will require additional time to regain full match fitness and will not be available for the final two T20Is of the ongoing five-match T20I series,” secretary Devajit Saikia was quoted as saying in a media release.

Tilak is expected to rejoin the squad ahead of India’s warm-up match

Tilak is expected to rejoin the squad in Mumbai on February 3, once fully fit, ahead of India’s warm-up match for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026.

“Tilak will link up with the squad in Mumbai once he has regained full match fitness on February 3, ahead of India’s warm-up match for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026. The Men’s Selection Committee has recommended that Shreyas Iyer will continue as Tilak Varma’s replacement for the remaining matches,” the release further stated.

In the meantime, Men’s Selection Committee confirmed Shreyas Iyer will continue as Tilak’s replacement for the remaining matches of the series. Iyer is yet to feature in the playing XI during the ongoing series. He has not played a T20I since December 2023.

India’s updated T20I squad: Suryakumar Yadav (C), Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson (WK), Shreyas Iyer, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel (VC), Rinku Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, Varun Chakaravarthy, Ishan Kishan (WK), Ravi Bishnoi