IND vs WI 2026: Why is Vaibhav Sooryavanshi not playing in the 1st T20I?

India and West Indies are meeting in the 1st T20I of their five-match series at the Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow on October 6, 2026. India won the toss and opted to field first. The series will then travel to Ranchi, Indore, Hyderabad and Bengaluru for the remaining four matches. India arrive in this T20I leg having won the preceding three-match ODI series against West Indies 2-1. Shreyas Iyer captains the side, with Tilak Varma named vice-captain.

Vaibhav Sooryavanshi is a part of India's 15-member T20I squad, but he has not been selected in the Playing XI for this opening match. No official injury, suspension or disciplinary reason has been provided for his absence. He remains on the bench, and no captain or selector comment explaining the decision was available at the time of the toss.

IND vs WI 2026: Toss Update

Shreyas Iyer won the toss and opted to field first. Interestingly, five out of the six T20Is played at this venue have been won by teams batting first. Iyer, however, cited the mixed soil used in the pitch and the dew factor as key reasons behind his decision to bowl first. West Indies skipper Shai Hope also said that he would have bowled first, expressing concerns about dew possibly playing a role in the second innings.

IND vs WI 2026: Gold Medal winners Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Ravi Bishnoi benched

Sooryavanshi played well during the Asian Games, especially in the semi-final, where he contributed with a quickfire cameo in tough batting conditions. However, he has had to make way for the first game against the Caribbean side. Naman Dhir is a surprise inclusion in the side. He is making his T20I debut after getting his ODI cap in the preceding 50-over series against the same opposition. Apart from Sooryavanshi, Prince Yadav, Ravi Bishnoi, and Nitish Kumar Reddy are also on the bench. Meanwhile, Amir Jangoo, Gudakesh Motie, Keemo Paul, and Quentin Sampson are the four West Indies players who couldn't find places in the playing XI.

IND vs WI 2026: What did the captains say?

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.

IND vs WI 2026: 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.