India’s T20I squad against England has taken a fresh hit. Spinner Varun Chakravarthy and pacer Harshit Rana have both been ruled out of the fourth and fifth T20Is after picking up hamstring injuries during the third match at Trent Bridge. The BCCI confirmed the news in a statement issued ahead of the fourth T20I in Bristol on Thursday.
Prasidh Krishna and Washington Sundar have been brought in as replacements for the Bristol fixture. India, already trailing in the series, now heads into the final two games without two of its key bowling options.
Injury Update on Varun and Rana
The BCCI medical team assessed both players after the third T20I and confirmed hamstring injuries severe enough to keep them out for the rest of the series. This is not the first fitness setback for either bowler this year. Rana missed the T20 World Cup and the IPL following knee surgery, while Varun dealt with a foot injury during IPL 2026 that forced him into rehab at the BCCI Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru. That injury also kept him out of India’s T20I series in Ireland, which India lost 2-0.
Rana had only recently returned to competitive cricket during the Ireland series before this latest injury sidelined him again. With both bowlers now out, question marks remain over Rana’s availability for the ODI series that follows the T20Is in England.
Impact on India’s T20I Series Hopes
India are trying to avoid a back-to-back loss in the T20I series, and the timing of these injuries is unfortunate. The team has suffered five consecutive defeats in T20Is, a dramatic turnaround from a three-year unbeaten streak in the format. The absence of Varun and Rana takes away the variety in spin and pace options from the side when England, with a resurgent Harry Brook and Phil Salt, has taken over the series.
England sealed the series win comfortably, and Brook has since set his sights on pushing his side to the top of the T20I rankings. For India, the bowling injuries add further pressure on a squad already dealing with selection debates following the exclusions of Suryakumar Yadav and Sanju Samson.
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What Comes Next for India
India will test its depth in the fifth T20I in Bristol as the fourth game is already underway. The team management is also looking at the big picture as the next T20 World Cup is two years away, and the current England tour is providing them with information on how the squad performs in a seam-friendly environment outside India. The T20Is are followed by a three-match ODI series, where Rana’s fitness for the latter remains unclear.
For now, the focus stays on the immediate series, where India will look to arrest the losing streak without two bowlers who were expected to play a central role in this England tour.
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