Harshit Rana was part of the warm-up matches.
Why is Harshit Rana not playing for India in T20 World Cup 2026? It’s because he has been ruled out of the tournament due to a last-minute injury during a warm-up match.
The question “Why is Harshit Rana Not Playing for India in T20 World Cup 2026?” has been trending since February 6. He was ruled out of the India squad for the tournament just a day before their opening match against the USA.
Rana had to leave the field after the fifth over in India’s warm-up match against South Africa on February 4.
Before bowling his first ball, Rana stopped in the middle of his run-up, and the same happened before the fifth ball of the over. The 24-year-old managed to bowl only one over before hobbling off the field.
“Following consultations with a specialist and subsequent scans, the BCCI medical team deemed him [Rana] unfit to participate in the tournament,” the BCCI said in a release.
Initially, the knee injury did not seem serious, but it was later assessed as significant enough to keep him out of the tournament. Thus, it led to why is Harshit Rana not playing for India in T20 World Cup 2026. The hosts have named Mohammed Siraj as the replacement. Siraj was not part of the original squad, with his last T20I appearance coming in July 2024.
Suryakumar Yadav (C), Axar Patel (VC), Ishan Kishan (WK), Sanju Samson (WK), Rinku Singh, Abhishek Sharma, Shivam Dube, Hardik Pandya, Tilak Varma, Washington Sundar, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Varun Chakaravarthy, Kuldeep Yadav, and Mohammed Siraj.
ALSO READ:
Harshit Rana has played eight T20Is for India and taken nine wickets so far. Since the start of 2025, he has picked up 24 wickets in 22 innings. He has usually performed well as a bowling all-rounder. In the ODI series against New Zealand, he even scored a half-century, showing he can help with the bat lower down the order.
With Rana in the team, India often rotated their bowlers, playing either him or Arshdeep in the XI. Mohammed Siraj brings plenty of experience and had a good IPL last season, taking 16 wickets. However, with Harshit Rana not playing for India in T20 World Cup 2026, they will lose the extra batting depth that the youngster provided in the lineup. India will hope that his absence does not affect the team too much.
For more updates, follow CricXtasy on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.
