Vaibhav Suryavanshi (PTI Image)
New Delhi: Indian cricket fans will not have to stay up late to watch the upcoming T20I series for the men’s team in England. In a move aimed at boosting TV viewership in India, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has revised the start times for three flood-lit T20Is during India’s white-ball tour of England next month.India will play five T20Is and three ODIs in England from July 1 to July 19. According to a report by ESPNcricinfo, the ECB has brought forward the start times of three evening T20I matches by one hour after discussions with broadcasters.
The matches were originally scheduled to start at 6.30pm local time (11pm EST), as announced last year. However, it will now start at 5.30pm local time (10pm EST), making it more convenient for Indian audiences to watch.The adjustment means fans in India can expect matches to end around 2am instead of extending closer to 3am.The decision once again underscores the commercial importance of India’s matches for English cricket. Rounds including India remain among the ECB’s most valuable broadcast properties, with television audiences playing a key role in scheduling decisions.The timing change comes days after the BCCI announced India’s squads for the two-match T20I series against Ireland and the five-match T20I series against England.
Shreyas Iyer will lead the team, replacing Suryakumar Yadav as captain, while the biggest talking point has been the inclusion of teenage player Vaibhav Suryavanshi in the India squad for the first time.The 15-year-old earned his maiden call-up after the record-breaking IPL 2026 season.Sooryavanshi finished as the leading run-scorer in IPL 2026, amassing 776 runs while winning the Orange Cap. He scored centuries and fifties at a remarkable strike rate of 237.30.His sensational campaign brought five individual awards – Emerging Player of the Season, Most Valuable Player, Orange Caps, Best Batting Rate of the Season and Most Sixes in the Championship.The young man now stands on the verge of making history. If selected during the Ireland or England series, Sooryavanshi will become India’s youngest international cricketer, surpassing the record currently held by Sachin Tendulkar.Tendulkar made his debut for India at the age of 16 years and 205 days during the 1989 tour of Pakistan. At 15 years old, Sooryavanshi has the opportunity to break a record that has stood for nearly four decades.
India squad for T20I series against Ireland:
Shreyas Iyer (C), Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson (WK), Ishan Kishan (WK), Shivam Dubey, Tilak Varma (VC), Nitish Kumar Reddy, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Varun Chakaravarthy, Ravi Bishnoi, Mohammad. Sooraj, Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Prince Yadav, Vaibhav Suryavanshi
India lineup for T20I series against England:
Shreyas Iyer (C), Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson (WK), Ishan Kishan (WK), Shivam Dubey, Tilak Varma (VC), Nitish Kumar Reddy, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Varun Chakaravarthy, Ravi Bishnoi, Mohammad. Sooraj, Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Prince Yadav, Vaibhav Suryavanshi