India has announced their squad for the upcoming T20 World Cup, with the exclusion of Shubman Gill emerging as the biggest surprise. Gill, who was recently named vice-captain of the Indian T20 side, did not find a place in the 15-member squad selected by chief selector Ajit Agarkar, with Suryakumar Yadav set to lead the team at the global tournament.
Ajit Agarkar explains selection strategy and team balance
Agarkar explained that Gill’s omission was not a reflection of his ability or form, but rather a result of the team’s preferred balance and tactical combinations.
"It's more to do with the combination that we want to play, or what the team management is comfortable with playing," Agarkar said. "Their thoughts are... who's going to bat at the top? Abhishek, obviously, has done what he has done over the last year. And we felt the keeper at the top at this point gives us a lot more solidity than anywhere else in the team to play different combinations.
Further he also added the management also felt that having a wicketkeeper open the innings would provide greater flexibility and stability, allowing the team to explore multiple combinations.
there are only 15 that we could have picked. Someone has to miss out. It's him. It's not because he's not a good player. Again, Jitesh hasn't done too much wrong. These are the combinations that the team management is looking for." he added
Suryakumar Yadav echoed similar views while addressing Gill’s omission, reiterating that it was driven purely by team composition. Gill had earlier replaced Sanju Samson in the playing XI during the tour of Australia after being appointed vice-captain, but his returns at the top of the order were modest.
Gill’s numbers at the top order in T20Is
Gill who did not score a single half-century in 15 innings, accumulating 291 runs at a strike rate of 137.26. A foot injury later ruled him out of the final two T20Is against South Africa, during which Samson opened the innings and scored 37 off 22 balls.
Suryakumar further explained that the management wanted a wicketkeeper at the top of the order to allow more variety in the middle and lower order, with players such as Rinku Singh or Washington Sundar offering different tactical options.Â
In another notable call, India’s first-choice wicketkeeper during the South Africa T20I series, Jithesh Sharma, was also left out of the World Cup squad following a lean run. He has been replaced by Ishan Kishan, who recently finished as the leading run-scorer in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy and captained Jharkhand to their maiden T20 title. Kishan is expected to serve as a backup option for Sanju Samson during the tournament.
India's squad for the T20 World Cup
Suryakumar Yadav (c), Axar Patel (vc), Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson (wk), Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Rinku Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, Varun Chakaravarthy, Washington Sundar, Ishan Kishan (wk)
