T20 World Cup: Harshit Rana deemed 'unfit', ruled out of tournament; Mohammed Siraj named replacement

NEW DELHI: India fast bowler Harshit Rana has been ruled out of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026, the BCCI said on Friday. Rana suffered a knee injury during India’s warm-up match against South Africa in Navi Mumbai on February 4, 2026.

The BCCI said Rana was assessed by a specialist and underwent scans, following which the medical team declared him unfit for the tournament. Mohammed Siraj has been named as his replacement in the squad.




Earlier in the day, India captain Suryakumar Yadav had said Rana was "not looking good".

Rana was injured during India’s T20 World Cup warm-up game against South Africa on Wednesday. He pulled out of his run-up twice in an over before holding his knee and leaving the field. He bowled just one over and gave away 16 runs.

India are already managing other fitness concerns in the squad. All-rounder Washington Sundar, who missed the recent T20 series against New Zealand due to a side strain, remains part of the World Cup squad and is expected to return in time for the tournament.

Tilak Varma, who was earlier ruled out due to injury, has made his return and featured in two warm-up matches ahead of the World Cup. India will begin their T20 World Cup 2026 campaign on February 7 at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai against USA.

India’s updated squad: Suryakumar Yadav (C), Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson (WK), Ishan Kishan (WK), Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel (VC), Rinku Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, Varun Chakaravarthy, Washington Sundar, Mohd Siraj

Get the latest ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 updates, including the full schedule, teams, live scores, points table, and key series stats such as top run-scorers and wicket-takers.