Harshit Rana has been ruled out of upcoming assignments after suffering a hamstring injury. The pacer was part of India T20I squad for the Asian Games 2026 in Japan, but his injury has forced the selectors to make a change. Yash Thakur has been named as his replacement in the squad.

The decision could raise some questions, especially with Prince Yadav also being in India’s plans across the white-ball formats.

Yash Thakur picked as a like-for-like replacement for Harshit Rana

Yash Thakur can be seen as a like-for like-replacement for Harshit Rana in the India T20I squad. Both are fast bowlers who can be used as attacking pace options and have experience of bowling in the middle and later stages of an innings.

Yash has played at the international level in T20Is. He was recently picked in India T20I squad for the Zimbabwe tour, where he made his international debut. The pacer played two matches on that tour and picked up four wickets.

His domestic cricket numbers could also be one of the reason for selection. In the recent Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy season, he had an impressive run for Vidarbha, taking 18 wickets in just seven matches at an economy rate of 6.80.

Why was Prince Yadav not selected as Harshit Rana’s replacement in India T20I Squad?

Prince Yadav has already been tested in current white ball setup, having featured in both T20Is and ODIs. He made his ODI debut against Afghanistan earlier this year and picked up three wickets in two matches. The pacer was also part of the recent ODI series against England, where he played the third match of the series at Lord’s and picked up one wicket.

There could be speculation that India wants to give Prince more chances in the ODI format. With the ODI World Cup coming up next year, the selectors will want to test their pace options before the tournament. The upcoming ODI series against West Indies, starting on September 27, falls around the same time as the Asian Games and could give Prince another opportunity to play in the 50 over format.

Jasprit Bumrah and Arshdeep Singh, two of India’s main pacers, are part of the Asian Games squad. Their absence could open the door for Prince to be included in the ODI squad.

At the same time, Yash Thakur has already played T20Is for India. He made his debut against Zimbabwe and took four wickets in two matches. With Harshit Rana ruled out, Yash could therefore be a replacement for him in the India T20I squad and Prince may play in the upcoming ODIs.