Aakash Chopra picks alternate India squad for T20 World Cup 2026; includes Mohammed Shami

Former cricketer-turned-commentator Aakash Chopra picked an alternate Indian squad for the upcoming 2026 T20 World Cup, starting February 7 (via his X handle). He went with the left-right combination of Ruturaj Gaikwad and Yashasvi Jaiswal as the two openers.

The former boasts an excellent T20I record, averaging 39.56 at a strike rate of 143.53 in 23 games. On the other hand, Jaiswal has an equally impressive average of 36.15 at a strike rate of over 164 in 23 T20Is.

Chopra picked Shreyas Iyer at No.3 despite the right-hander having not played a T20I for India since December 2023. However, he led the Punjab Kings (PBKS) to the IPL 2025 final, while scoring over 600 runs at an average of 50.33 in 17 outings.

Wicketkeepers, Rishabh Pant and Jitesh Sharma, came in at No. 4 and 5 in Chopra's alternate 11. The former was part of the Indian 2024 T20 World Cup-winning squad but has struggled in T20Is overall.

Meanwhile, Jitesh was arguably the most unfortunate to miss out on India's 2026 T20 World Cup squad after playing in their last seven T20Is.

All-rounders Nitish Kumar Reddy and Krunal Pandya rounded off the top seven, with the latter helping the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) win their maiden IPL title earlier this year.

Aakash Chopra goes seam-heavy for his bowling attack

Aakash Chopra picked three seamers, Deepak Chahar, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, and Mohammed Shami, for his final four spots. Chahar hasn't played a T20I for India since the end of 2023 but boasts an outstanding record with 31 wickets at an average of 24.09.

Meanwhile, Bhuveshwar spearheaded RCB's new-ball attack in their title run earlier this year. As for Shami, he overcame a poor IPL 2025 season with an excellent showing in the recent 2025-26 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT).

Finally, Chopra rounded off his playing XI with the IPL's all-time leading wicket-taker, Yuzvendra Chahal. The leggie, boasting a league-high 221 wickets, bagged 16 scalps in PBKS' final run in IPL 2025.

The 11 aside, Aakash Chopra also picked pacer Mohammed Siraj and wicketkeeper batter KL Rahul in his alternate Indian T20 World Cup squad. The former played a vital role in India's 2024 T20 World Cup triumph, while the latter enjoyed another prolific IPL season in the 2025 edition, finishing with 539 runs at an average of almost 54.

Aakash Chopra’s alternate Team India squad for the 2026 T20 World Cup

Ruturaj Gaikwad, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant, Jitesh Sharma, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Krunal Pandya, Deepak Chahar, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohammed Shami, Yuzvendra Chahal, Mohammed Siraj, KL Rahul

Follow IPL Auction 2025 Live Updates, News & Biddings at Sportskeeda. Get the fastest updates on Mega-Auction and cricket news

Edited by Venkatesh Ravichandran