BCCI on Saturday announced the 15-member Indian team for the 2026 T20 World Cup. Vice-captain Shubman Gill did not get a place in this team. Ishan Kishan got a chance in his place. Along with this, Sanju Samson’s opening was also approved. After the announcement of the team, a report came out which will surprise everyone.
Shubman Gill’s future was not actually decided on Saturday, when BCCI Secretary Devjit Saikia announced the Indian squad for the T20 World Cup, as his future was decided only on Wednesday when the fourth T20 International against South Africa was abandoned due to dense fog, news agency PTI reported. According to a BCCI source, the decision was taken on the same day that Gill will not be selected in the T20 World Cup team. However, till Saturday morning neither the chairman of the selection committee had informed him about this nor captain Suryakumar Yadav or head coach Gautam Gambhir had talked to him about it.
Captain Suryakumar’s record in the last one year has been very bad, while he got relief, Gill’s ouster in this manner may naturally seem disappointing. As soon as the news spread that Gill had injured his toe while batting, it was clear that something was not right, Gambhir and the Suryakumar-led team management had moved ahead with Gill’s replacement.
If BCCI sources are to be believed, the team management had already decided to drop the vice-captain while Gill wanted to play the Ahmedabad match because the injury was not so serious. This was the first signal for the Indian vice-captain to be dropped from the team, as he had scored a total of 32 runs in three matches against South Africa. Initially the medical team suspected a ‘hairline fracture’, but later the scan revealed that it was just an injury and he could play the Ahmedabad match with the help of painkillers.
If we pay attention to the words of selection committee chairman Ajit Agarkar, then he also did not seem completely confident about this decision because for a long time he had considered this Punjab batsman as the potential captain of India in every format. If we take a cursory look at the records of Gill and Suryakumar, this stylish batsman from Mohali has every reason to feel cheated.
Gill has scored 291 runs in 15 innings in 2025, his strike rate has been more than 137 while Suryakumar has scored 218 runs in 19 innings at a strike rate of 123.2, which is his worst performance after debut in international cricket. Apart from this, there is also discussion in the corridors of the Indian team that the captain’s right wrist is not completely fine. Two players were in poor form and the national selection committee had to drop one of them. In such cases the captain is often kept away from it.
For this reason, being the captain, Suryakumar was successful in saving his place while Gill had to pay the price because his impact was not that strong while opening the innings with Abhishek Sharma. It should also not be forgotten that Gill is currently the captain of India in two other formats and this decision can create an atmosphere of distrust in the Indian dressing room. Will the chemistry between Gill and Gambhir continue after such a sudden and humiliating ouster? If Suryakumar could not score runs, he would not only lose his place in the dressing room but ultimately also his place in the team, because those who know Gambhir know that for him, winning is not everything, but winning is everything.
