India and the West Indies begin a five-match T20I series at the Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow on October 6, 2026. Following the toss, the home side elected to field first. The series will subsequently move to Ranchi, Indore, Hyderabad, and Bengaluru for the remaining four fixtures. India enters this leg after securing a 2-1 victory in the preceding three-match ODI series. Shreyas Iyer leads the squad, with Tilak Varma serving as vice-captain.
Vaibhav Sooryavanshi is included in India’s 15-member squad but has not been named in the playing XI for this opening match. No official reason, such as injury, suspension, or disciplinary action, has been disclosed for his absence. He remains on the bench, and neither the captain nor the selectors had offered an explanation for the decision at the time of the toss.
Toss Update
Iyer chose to bowl first, despite historical evidence suggesting teams batting first have won five of the six T20Is previously staged at this venue. The captain pointed to the mixed soil composition of the pitch and the expected dew as decisive factors. West Indies skipper Shai Hope agreed, noting that chasing is generally preferred in India due to dew affecting the second innings.
Squad Notes: Gold Medalists Await Bench Role
Sooryavanshi impressed during the Asian Games, particularly in the semi-final where he offered a quickfire cameo in difficult batting conditions. Nevertheless, he was replaced for the match against the Caribbean side. Naman Dhir represents a surprise selection, earning his T20I debut after being capped in the ODI series against the same opposition. Alongside Sooryavanshi, Ravi Bishnoi, Prince Yadav, and Nitish Kumar Reddy are on the standby list. For the West Indies, Amir Jangoo, Gudakesh Motie, Keemo Paul, and Quentin Sampson were the four players left out of the playing XI.
Statements from the Captains
Shreyas Iyer, India captain, said:
We are going to bowl first, it’s a mixed soil. There will be some dew as well. [Very short turnaround from the highs of a gold medal in Japan. How does it feel?] Yeah, it’s obviously past and the travel was pretty hectic. I got one day at home and then overnight travel, came last night. As you mentioned, quick turnaround, but right now in the zone, thinking about today’s game and obviously it’s going to be a great challenge. [Chat inside the dressing room, given that they came very strong in that ODI series, especially in the final game?] It’s (the series) definitely been fabulous throughout, and if you see in the last couple of years, they have dominated T20 cricket as well, irrespective of how they play. They are unpredictable, but at the same time they know what they are doing. They have got brilliant batting in Shai Hope and a few other batsmen and all-rounders in the team. So, yeah, as I mentioned, we’re looking forward for a great challenge and great contest. [Playing XI?] So Ravi (Bishnoi), Nitish (Reddy), Vaibhav (Sooryavanshi) and one more is sitting out. I can’t remember the name, but yeah, Prince (Yadav) is not playing.
Shai Hope, West Indies captain, said:
We would have bowled first as well. In India, it’s usually a lot better to chase, especially due (to) dew coming into play. We cannot (defend) better. [What has been the chat inside the dressing room?] Just about being able to adapt again. Every set of conditions you come to is very different, and as a player you’ve got to be able to adapt to these conditions here in India again. The combinations that we have, a few guys coming in, a few guys being here for quite a while. So we’re going to lean on those experienced guys and hopefully can prolong the younger guys who are coming into international cricket. But yeah, we just got to play our best cricket and hopefully can get a result. [On the playing XI] We’ve got six bowling options, a few all-rounders in there as well.
Confirmed Playing XIs
India
Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson (WK), Ishan Kishan, Shreyas Iyer (C), Tilak Varma, Shivam Dube, Naman Dhir, Axar Patel, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, Mayank Yadav.
West Indies
Shai Hope (WK & C), Kamil Pooran, Shimron Hetmyer, Rovman Powell, Sherfane Rutherford, Romario Shepherd, Matthew Forde, Roston Chase, Akeal Hosein, Shamar Springer, Shamar Joseph.
