Former cricketer Robin Uthappa reckons that three uncapped stars Priyansh Arya, Prabhsimran Singh and Vaibhav Suryavanshi will "definitely" be in contention for a spot in India's T20 World Cup 2026 squad.
Several franchises unearthed fresh and raw talents in the recently held IPL 2025 season. While some were identified as ones for the future, a few of them made serious claims for a place in the Indian T20I side.
Punjab Kings' opening pair Priyansh and Prabhsimran entertained with their aggressive display throughout the tournament. Besides them, Rajasthan Royals’ teenage sensation Vaibhav Suryavanshi took the cricketing world by storm with his record-shattering exploits.
With the rise of the young trio, India will face a big challenge in figuring out the best top order for next year's marquee event. Shubman Gill and Yashasvi Jaiswal have fallen behind in the packing order, with Abhishek Sharma and Sanju Samson forming a new opening pair in their absence.
Uthappa wants India to invest its time in the remaining T20Is to identify the best possible squad for the T20 World Cup title defence.
"Priyansh Arya, Prabhsimran Singh, Vaibhav Suryavanshi, all of them will definitely be in contention for a World Cup spot. It's about using the remaining T20s before the tournament to figure out the best 15-man squad. You already have Shubman Gill, Sai Sudharsan and Yashasvi Jaiswal, all Test players who can also thrive in T20s," Uthappa said at the launch of the Australian Summer of Cricket 2025-26.
"Then there's Sanju Samson. So it's going to be a challenge figuring out who makes the cut. Fitness will play a key role -- you want a fully fit squad going into a World Cup, and I'm sure that's something the selectors and management will be closely monitoring," he added.
During the IPL 2025 season, Prabhsimran aggregated 549 runs in 17 matches at 32.29 while striking over 160 with four fifties and a best score of 91. His opening partner, Priyansh finished the season with 475 runs in 17 innings at 27.94 while maintaining a strike rate of 179.24, including a solitary century and two fifties.
On the other hand, Suryavanshi scored 252 runs in seven matches with a strike rate of 206.55. The highlight of his maiden IPL season was the mind-blowing 35-ball century he slammed against Gujarat Titans at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium.
(With ANI Inputs)
