Former Team India selector Dilip Vengsarkar feels that young opener Yashasvi Jaiswal has been unfairly overlooked for the 2026 T20 World Cup squad. Despite an impressive T20I record, the 23-year-old has not represented India in the format since July 2024. Even after Shubman Gill was unexpectedly left out of the squad, Jaiswal was still not included in the final 15.
Instead, the team opted for Ishan Kishan as a backup wicketkeeper who can also open the batting. Speaking to PTI about Jaiswal’s repeated exclusion from the T20I setup, Vengsarkar told NDTV:
“They are all excellent players, but I am with selection committee when they judge players on the basis of current form and fitness. Current form does play an important role in the context of selection. And if you ask whom I would have picked instead of Gill, my choice would have been Jaiswal. He has proven time and again what a class performer he is and has always given the team the kind of starts required these days.”
He further continued:
“It is unfortunate that Yashasvi is being left out time and again for no fault of his. He has been in tremendous form across all formats of the game, and I don’t know what else he has to do to get into the team. Nobody should leave a match-winner out of the team.”
“You Lose Confidence If You’re Made To Feel Unwanted” – Dilip Vengsarkar
Dilip Vengsarkar cautioned that Yashasvi Jaiswal could lose confidence because of his repeated omission from India’s T20I team. The left-handed opener has been one of the most influential batsmen in recent IPL seasons, scoring over 400 runs in each of the last three editions while maintaining a strike rate above 150.
“You are bound to lose confidence if you are made to feel that you are not required in one format. I mean, it will affect his confidence, and this game is all about confidence. And confidence comes when you have performances backed by runs,” said Vengsarkar (via the aforementioned source).
Jaiswal has accumulated 3,682 runs in his T20 career, averaging 33.47 with a strike rate exceeding 152 across 121 matches.
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