India pacer Mohammed Siraj had been withdrawn from the T20I squads for the upcoming tours of Ireland and England, with the BCCI opting to manage his workload ahead of a packed international calendar. Prasidh Krishna has been drafted into the squad as Siraj’s replacement for both series.
The decision comes after consultations between the BCCI Medical Team and the Indian team management, who have recommended a period of rest for the fast bowler following a busy season.
Why has Mohammed Siraj been rested?
In an official statement, the BCCI confirmed that Siraj’s withdrawal is part of a planned workload management strategy.
“Following discussions between the BCCI Medical Team and the Team Management, Siraj has been advised a period of rest as part of his workload management programme,” the board said.
The move has been taken as a precautionary measure to ensure the pacer remains fresh for a demanding international schedule in the months ahead.
Prasidh Krishna earns T20I recall
With Siraj unavailable, the selectors have handed an opportunity to Prasidh Krishna, who returns to India’s T20I setup after a lengthy gap.
The fast bowler has featured in five T20 Internationals for India so far, picking up eight wickets. His most recent appearance in the format came against Australia in Guwahati in November 2023.
Prasidh was also included in India’s ODI squad for the upcoming Afghanistan series and recently featured alongside Siraj in the one-off Test against Afghanistan in New Chandigarh.
Gujarat Titans teammates swap places
Interestingly, both Siraj and Prasidh were part of Gujarat Titans’ campaign in IPL 2026.
Siraj played a key role across 17 matches during the season, while Prasidh featured in 12 games as Gujarat progressed to the final. The workload management decision now allows Siraj additional recovery time before India’s busy run of international assignments.
Busy schedule ahead for Team India
After the Ireland and England T20I series, India will continue their white-ball preparations with an ODI tour of England before travelling to Zimbabwe, Sri Lanka and New Zealand later in the season.
The T20I tour begins with two matches against Ireland in Belfast on June 26 and 28. India will then travel to England for a five-match T20I series scheduled from July 1 to July 11.
India’s updated T20I squad
Shreyas Iyer (Captain), Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson, Ishan Kishan, Shivam Dube, Tilak Varma (Vice-Captain), Nitish Kumar Reddy, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Varun Chakravarthy, Ravi Bishnoi, Prasidh Krishna, Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Prince Yadav and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi
