Ayush Mhatre to lead India in U19 World Cup, BCCI names Vaibhav Suryavanshi interim captain for SA tour

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The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has announced the squad for the ICC Under-19 Men’s ODI World Cup 2026. Ayush Mhatre and Vihaan Malhotra will continue as captain and vice-captain.

Entering the tournament as 5-time champions (2000, 2008, 2012, 2018, and 2022) and last year’s finalists, India will be the favourites to win. Having Mhatre and Vaibhav Suryavanshi in the side, who are already superstars in the Indian Premier League (IPL), just adds more weight to the expectations.

India’s squad for ICC Under-19 Men’s ODI World Cup 2026

Ayush Mhatre (C), Vihaan Malhotra (VC), Vaibhav Suryavanshi, Aaron George, Vedant Trivedi, Abhigyan Kundu (wk), Harvansh Singh (wk), R.S. Ambrish, Kanishk Chouhan, Khilan A. Patel, Mohamed Enaan, Henil Patel, D. Deepesh, Kishan Kumar Singh, Udhav Mohan

While Mhatre will lead the team in the ICC event, he won’t be featuring in the preparatory series against South Africa. He and Vihaan are out with wrist injuries and will report to the BCCI Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Bengaluru. In Mhatre’s absence, Suryavanshi will captain the side, and Aaron George will be his deputy.

“Ayush Mhatre and Vihaan Malhotra have sustained wrist injuries and will miss the South Africa tour. The duo will report to the BCCI Centre of Excellence for further management of their injuries and will join the team for the ICC Men’s Under-19 World Cup,” BCCI wrote when announcing the squad.

India’s Under-19 squad for South Africa series

India’s squad for SA tour: Vaibhav Suryavanshi (C), Aaron George (VC), Vedant Trivedi, Abhigyan Kundu (wk), Harvansh Singh (wk), R.S. Ambrish, Kanishk Chouhan, Khilan A. Patel, Mohamed Enaan, Henil Patel, D. Deepesh, Kishan Kumar Singh, Udhav Mohan, Yuvraj Gohil, Rahul Kumar