Chief selector Ajit Agarkar explains the reason behind Shubman Gills comeback in Indias T20I set-up
Shubman Gill was the most notable inclusion in India's Asia Cup 2025 squad. The India Test captain has been named as the deputy of Suryakumar Yadav for the marquee tournament.
New Delhi: Team India announced a strong 15-member squad for the Asia Cup 2025 to be held in the United Arab Emirates next month. The team was announced during a press conference attended by India captain Suryakumar Yadav and chief selector Ajit Agarkar in Mumbai.
While the names announced in the presser were along expected lines, one name caught the attention of the fans and experts. India's Test skipper Shubman Gill, who hasn't played in a T20I for over a year, was surprisingly picked in the Asia Cup squad and was even named the vice-captain, replacing Axar Patel as the deputy of SKY.
Gill was picked over the likes of Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shreyas Iyer, who both missed the bus for the UAE.
The Punjab batter last played for India in the T20 format in July last year in the Sri Lanka series, which was held straight after the T20 World Cup. While Gill was part of the mega-event in the Americas, he didn't get a game.
On why the selection committee handed Gill a recall, Agarkar said: "We see leadership qualities in Gill. His form in England was something we expected, but he exceeded it all".
Gill enjoyed an outstanding series in his debut series as India's Test captain on the England tour. Under his leadership, Team India fought tooth and nail and eked out a commendable 2-2 stalemate against hosts and favourites England. With the bat, he was miles ahead of every batter in the series, scoring a total of 754 runs in 5 matches, averaging 75.40, including four centuries.
India had to choose between Gill and Jaiswal for the opening slot, and they chose not to let India Test captain warm the bench. Jaiswal, meanwhile, is one of the five standby players for the tournament.
Meanwhile, ace pacer Jasprit Bumrah has been picked for his first T20 tournament since last year's World Cup. The star pacer played three out of five Tests in England as part of the workload management plan to protect him from playing excessive cricket.
On his workload management, Agarkar said: "We have had a nice break...We are trying to look after him."
Left-arm wrist spinner Kuldeep Yadav has been drafted in as a spin partner for Varun Chakravarthy. Jitesh Sharma will be the backup wicketkeeper batter while Dhruv Jurel missed out.
India is placed in Group A alongside Pakistan, Oman, and the UAE at the Asia Cup 2025, which begins on September 9.
India squad for Asia Cup: Suryakumar Yadav (captain), Shubman Gill (vice-captain), Abhishek Sharma, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Jasprit Bumrah, Jitesh Sharma, Shivam Dube, Arshdeep Singh, Sanju Samson, Harshit Rana, Tilak Varma, Rinku Singh, Varun Chakravarthy, Kuldeep Yadav.