T20 World Cup 2026 Team India Strongest Bench Squad List

From Yashasvi Jaiswal to Shreyas Iyer, explore the trophy-winning bench squad list for Team India for the T20 World Cup 2026.

Craze, madness, frenzy, whatever you call it, the current Indian T20 team is a nightmare for any opposition. If Abhishek Sharma doesn’t hit, Sanju Samson will. If Sanju Samson doesn’t, Ishan Kishan will. And if Ishan Kishan doesn’t, Suryakumar Yadav will. Similarly, if SKY doesn’t, Hardik Pandya will. If even Hardik Pandya doesn’t, the team still has Rinku Singh, Shivam Dube, and Axar Patel, who can maintain the tempo of runs at a blistering strike rate.

Not just that, the current bowling strength of the Indian team is the best India has ever had in history. Be it Jasprit Bumrah, the world’s best pacer, or Varun Chakravarthy, the world’s best spinner, or one of the best bowlers like Kuldeep Yadav and Arshdeep Singh. The current bowling lineup is just lit. Add to it the world-class all-rounders – Hardik Pandya and Axar Patel. The current Indian team’s strength is nothing short of extraordinary.  

While the first-choice selected team is out of this world in itself, just imagine the bench strength of the Indian team, which doesn’t have a place for the likes of Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant, KL Rahul, etc. It’s shocking to see the kind of talent the Indian team has that so many star players couldn’t make it to the squad. So, how about we take a look at the bench squad list for Team India that is equally capable enough to win the T20 World Cup 2026. 

T20 World Cup 2026 Team India Bench Squad List Discussed

If we start with the best batters who are as strong as the selected ones, we are looking at Yashasvi Jaiswal, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shubman Gill, Shreyas Iyer, and Sai Sudharsan. These five batters are a solid mix of aggression and sensibleness, giving India the right approach with the batting when needed. While Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shreyas Iyer are naturally aggressive, Sai Sudharsan, Shubman Gill, and Ruturaj Gaikwad can adapt depending on the wicket they are playing on. 

If we talk about the wicket-keepers, India have KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant as the two solid wicket-keepers missing the T20 World Cup squad. The thing about both these keepers is that, if required, they can also play in the middle-order, and can open too. KL Rahul in the middle-order, and Rishabh Pant as an opener are two things that India missed seeing. Given their potential, they could certainly have a solid career with these roles. 

Now, coming to the All-rounders, Team India once again have two solid names, and those are Riyan Parag and Nitish Reddy. The duo bring a solid mix of aggressive batting, spin and pace bowling capabilities. These two are ideal numbers, 6 and 7, that one would like to have. However, the only missing piece in this squad is number 8 as India, at this moment are devoid of this skill, with practically no good proven option available on the bench. 

Now, coming to the bowling lineup, India have six strong names to focus on. While Mayank Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, and Khaleel Ahmed make pace bowling look strong, the spin bowling is taken care of by the duo, Ravi Bishnoi and Yuzvendra Chahal. The bowling lineup once again highlights how strong the core of the Indian team is, and they can even challenge the best team in the world. 

T20 World Cup 2026 Team India Trophy-winning Bench Squad List

Batters

• Ruturaj Gaikwad
• Sai Sudharsan
• Shreyas Iyer (C)
• Shubman Gill
• Yashasvi Jaiswal

WKs

• KL Rahul
• Rishabh Pant

All-rounders

• Nitish Reddy
• Riyan Parag

Bowlers

• Khaleel Ahmed
• Mohammed Siraj
• Mayank Yadav
• Prasidh Krishna
• Ravi Bishnoi
• Yuzvendra Chahal

Now, if we talk about the T20 World Cup 2026 Best Bench Playing XI for India, there’s incredible depth and flexibility. With explosive top-order options like Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, and Ruturaj Gaikwad, this lineup can match the firepower of most first-choice XIs. Shreyas Iyer leads the side as captain, bringing stability and experience, while KL Rahul adds reliability as a wicketkeeper-batter. The presence of multi-dimensional players such as Riyan Parag and Nitish Reddy ensures balance across batting and bowling. A potent bowling attack featuring Ravi Bishnoi, Mohammed Siraj, Mayank Yadav, and Khaleel Ahmed underlines just how strong India’s bench strength is for the T20 World Cup 2026, making selection a luxury rather than a concern.

T20 World Cup 2026 Best Bench Playing 11 for Team India

1. Yashasvi Jaiswal
2. Shubman Gill
3. Ruturaj Gaikwad
4. Shreyas Iyer (c)
5. KL Rahul (wk)
6. Riyan Parag
7. Nitish Reddy
8. Ravi Bishnoi
9. Mohammed Siraj
10. Mayank Yadav
11. Khaleel Ahmed

Meanwhile, the missing  T20 World Cup 2026 squad may consider itself unfortunate, but should also be proud of the fact that the selected squad has all the ingredients to defend the trophy. India will begin their T20 World Cup campaign on Feb 07 against the USA. They will play four Group stage matches, including the blockbuster India vs Pakistan on Feb 15, before moving for the Super 8 matches. 

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