Kamal Ghorui
NEW DELHI: India fast bowler Harshit Rana’s participation in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 is in doubt after he suffered an injury during the warm-up match against South Africa in Navi Mumbai on Wednesday.Rana picked up the injury while bowling in India’s warm-up game. He aborted his run-up twice in an over before clutching his knee and walking off the field. He bowled only one over and conceded 16 runs.India captain Suryakumar Yadav said on Friday that while Rana has not been ruled out yet but admitted the situation does not look encouraging.“Harshit Rana has not been ruled out yet, the physios are assessing him but he does not look good,” Suryakumar said.Suryakumar said the team management is prepared to look at alternatives if Rana is unavailable.“We will see which fast bowlers have done well in last 1-2 years or bowlers who can bat. But if you are expecting a No 9 to hit out, what are the top eight doing? We will try to pick the best one,” the India T20 captain said if a replacement is required.He added that the squad was selected keeping combinations in mind and that the team has enough options to adjust if needed.“You make a squad thinking combinations, if he (Rana) is unavailable, then we have enough players to make new combination. If we miss him, we will definitely miss him. We will look at fast bowlers who can bat also, but no hard and fast rule. We have options,” Suryakumar said.India are already managing other fitness concerns in the squad. All-rounder Washington Sundar, who missed the recent T20 series against New Zealand due to a side strain, remains part of the World Cup squad and is expected to return in time for the tournament.Tilak Varma, who was earlier ruled out due to injury, has made his return and featured in two warm-up matches ahead of the World Cup.India will begin their T20 World Cup 2026 campaign on February 7 at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai against USA.
