Sanju Samson missing from India's T20I squad for Zimbabwe tour, Rinku Singh returns

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) unveiled India's squad for the upcoming three-match T20I series against Zimbabwe on Monday, July 6. The most notable absentee from the team was opening batter Sanju Samson, who has been going through a lean patch ever since the Ireland tour.

However, the selection committee hasn’t mentioned whether Samson has been dropped or rested for the tour. Rinku Singh has made his comeback after missing the Ireland and England series. Rinku was surprisingly not considered for the two tours, despite being part of India's T20 World Cup 2026 winning campaign.

Apart from him, Prabhsimran Singh, Ashok Sharma and Yash Thakur have received their maiden India call-ups, while Harsh Dubey has been added to the T20I squad for the first time after impressive performances in his debut ODI series against Afghanistan.

Prabhsimran has been knocking on the selection doors, courtesy of his consistent performances in the Indian Premier League (IPL). He finished as the leading run scorer for Punjab Kings (PBKS) in IPL 2026, scoring 510 runs from 13 innings at an average of 42.50 and a strike rate of 168.87 with six fifties to his name.

On the other hand, Ashok Sharma impressed with his express pace in IPL 2026, scalping six wickets for Gujarat Titans (GT) from as many games. Yash Thakur has an impressive record in T20 cricket with 110 wickets to his name from 74 matches at an average of 18.75.

Mayank Yadav also back in the team

He was Vidarbha’s leading wicket-taker in Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2025-26 with 18 scalps from seven innings. Fast bowler Mayank Yadav has also marked his return to the T20I side after almost 20 months. India will play three T20Is against Zimbabwe beginning on July 23.

Meanwhile, the selection committee has also added Shivam Dube as a replacement for Nitish Kumar Reddy in India’s squad for the ODI series against England.

India’s squad for Zimbabwe T20I series: Shreyas Iyer (Captain), Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma (Vice-Captain), Ishan Kishan (WK), Shivam Dube, Suryansh Shedge, Rinku Singh, Harsh Dubey, Varun Chakaravarathy, Prince Yadav, Yash Thakur, Ashok Sharma, Mayank Yadav, Prabhsimran Singh (WK)

India’s updated ODI squad vs England: Shubman Gill (Captain), Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer (Vice-Captain), KL Rahul (WK), Ishan Kishan (WK), Washington Sundar, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Prasidh Krishna, Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Gurnoor Brar, Shivam Dube