Gurdaspur-born Dilpreet Bajwa has been named captain of the Canadian cricket team for the upcoming ICC Men’s T20 World Cup. Bajwa moved to Canada in 2020 and has quickly risen through the ranks of Canadian cricket.
Last year, he became the first Canadian player to score a century in the Global T20 Canada tournament, playing for the Montreal Tigers. In earlier interviews, Bajwa spoke about facing rejection while playing cricket in Punjab, a phase that eventually pushed him to shift abroad and rebuild his career in Canada.
Canada made its T20 World Cup debut in 2024, finishing fourth in the group stage with three points, including a memorable 12-run win over Ireland. They qualified for the upcoming edition by winning the Americas Regional Final, going unbeaten with six wins in six matches.
During the qualifiers, Shivam Sharma’s off-spin (11 wickets at 7.81) and Kaleem Sana’s left-arm pace (10 wickets at 7.5) were standout performances. In the batting department, Canada will rely on attacking batter Nicholas Kirton, supported by Yuvraj Samra, who boasts a strike rate of 160.72.
Canada face a tough challenge in the World Cup, being grouped with South Africa, New Zealand, Afghanistan and UAE. They will open their campaign against South Africa in Ahmedabad on February 9, 2026.
Canadian media earlier reported that coach Ingleton Liburd had named Nicholas Kirton as captain in a 20-member squad announcement, but Bajwa has now replaced Kirton as skipper for the tournament. Kirton himself had taken over the role from Saad Bin Zafar in 2024.
Canada squad for ICC Men’s T20 World Cup
Dilpreet Bajwa (C), Ajayveer Hundal, Ansh Patel, Dilon Heyliger, Harsh Thaker, Jaskarandeep Buttar, Kaleem Sana, Kanwarpal Tathgur, Navneet Dhaliwal, Nicholas Kirton, Ravinderpal Singh, Saad Bin Zafar, Shivam Sharma, Shreyas Movva, Yuvraj Samra.
