Star Indian middle-order batter Tilak Varma will miss the five-match T20I series between India and New Zealand, which is set to start on January 21 in Nagpur.
According to a report in the Indian Express on Thursday (January 8), Tilak has suffered an abdomen injury because of which he won’t be able to participate in the upcoming five T20Is against the Black Caps.
It has been reported that the Indian team will draft a replacement player for the series, but it is highly unlikely that he will be Shubman Gill.
As per the available information, 23-year-old left-handed batter Tilak was in Rajkot playing the Vijay Hazare Trophy for his domestic side, Hyderabad, when he felt a pain in the abdomen after breakfast on Wednesday morning (January 7). He has consulted with doctors at the BCCI’s Centre of Excellence (COE) in Bengaluru.
India-New Zealand T20I series schedule
| DATE | DAY | MATCH | VENUE | START TIME (IST) |
| January 21 | Wednesday | 1st T20I | Nagpur | 07:00 PM |
| January 23 | Friday | 2nd T20I | Raipur | 07:00 PM |
| January 25 | Sunday | 3rd T20I | Guwahati | 07:00 PM |
| January 28 | Wednesday | 4th T20I | Visakhapatnam | 07:00 PM |
| January 31 | Saturday | 5th T20I | Thiruvananthapuram | 07:00 PM |
“Tilak faced severe pain in his abdomen today (Wednesday). He was rushed to a hospital in Rajkot, where various scans were done, and reports were sent to doctors at the COE,” a BCCI source was quoted as saying.
“Doctors have advised him to undergo surgery, which will take three to four weeks for him to recover. Chances of playing the entire T20I against New Zealand look bleak,” he added.
If Tilak undergoes surgery, then he might miss India’s first couple of Group A matches in the T20 World Cup 2026. In the T20 World Cup 2026, India are set to open their campaign on February 7 in Mumbai against the United States of America and then take on Namibia in Delhi on February 12. India’s third Group A match is scheduled against arch-rivals Pakistan in Colombo on February 15, and then the Suryakumar Yadav-led side will take on the Netherlands in Ahmedabad on February 18.
India’s T20 World Cup 2026 schedule
| DATE | DAY | OPPOSITION | VENUE | START TIME (IST) |
| February 7 | Saturday | USA | Mumbai | 07:00 PM |
| February 12 | Thursday | Namibia | Delhi | 07:00 PM |
| February 15 | Sunday | Pakistan | Colombo | 07:00 PM |
| February 18 | Wednesday | Netherlands | Ahmedabad | 07:00 PM |
India’s squad for T20 World Cup 2026 and New Zealand T20Is: Suryakumar Yadav (C), Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson (WK), Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel (VC), Rinku Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, Varun Chakaravarthy, Washington Sundar, Ishan Kishan (WK)