With Shubman Gill’s appointment as India’s next Test captain, The Men in Blue now have three different captains for different formats. Gill is the Test captai, Rohit Sharma is the ODI skipper and Suryakumar Yadav, the captain in T20Is.
SKY will lead the Indian team in the upcoming edition of the Asia Cup. There are also reports of Shubman Gill’s inclusion in the side and also naming him as the vice-captain of the T20I format.
Shubman Gill was not a regular for India in T20Is. However, with Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli retiring from the formats after the T20 World Cup last year, a few slots have opened up. Gill is seen as someone who can replace Rohit Sharma at the top. His recent success as Test skipper with India is making the management believe that he can be made the vice-captain in T20Is.
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Slightly Tricky - Aakash Chopra On Shubman Gill's Choice As Vice-Captain In T20Is
In recent times, Hardik Pandya and Axar Patel were named as vice-captains in the T20I format. With the Asia Cup coming up, the management is looking towards Gill as Surya’s deputy and groom him as the next ODI skipper.
Meanwhile, former Indian opener Aakash Chopra in his recent YouTube video said that India as a team does not require three different captains across formats. He further questioned the decision to name him as the vice-captain ahead of Axar.
"Shubman Gill in Test matches, Rohit Sharma in ODIs and Suryakumar Yadav in T20Is, three formats and three captains. Is it right? Will there be any change in that? Will a captain be handed two formats? Will you start introducing Shubman Gill in T20s?. There could be a temptation. There are rumors as well. If that happens, will you make Shubman Gill the vice-captain instead of Axar in T20Is for continuity? This is going to be a slightly tricky one. I feel two captains are enough. Having three captains becomes a bit much," Chopra said.
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Captain Needs Continuity - Chopra
Chopra concluded by saying that a captain needs continuity, which is why he feels that having different captains for different formats is uncalled for with respect to the Indian team.
"A captain has a massive role. There are many team sports where the captain's role is limited. Football, for example, very limited role. It's the manager who manages the game from outside. Cricket is not like that. Cricket is a very intuitive game. You cannot spoon-feed a captain there. In such a scenario, you want a little continuity. Generally, you have a Test captain and a separate white-ball captain. I can still understand two captains. However, three captains for three formats, then it complicates a few things because there will be an overlap somewhere or other in the three formats," Chopra observed.
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