I respect the selectors decision: Shubman Gill breaks silence on T20 World Cup snub
Breaking his silence on his snub from India's T20 World Cup 2026 squad, Team India's ODI skipper Shubman Gill said he respects the selectors' call and feels he is where he needs to be in his career.
India's ODI skipper Shubman Gill broke his silence on his snub from the Men in Blue's squad for the T20 World Cup 2026 during the pre-match press conference ahead of the 1st ODI against New Zealand in Vadodara on Saturday. Gill-led India will take on the Kiwis in a three-match ODI series, starting Sunday, December 11.
Gill was left out of India's 15-member squad for the T20 World Cup last month as the selectors handed a recall to wicket-keeper batter Ishan Kishan after his heroics in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2025. Gill was named the vice-captain of India's T20I team after making his comeback in the shortest format last year.
He was also promoted to open the batting with Abhishek Sharma, replacing Sanju Samson at the top. However, his poor returns in the format led to Gill getting snubbed from the T20 World Cup 2026 squad. He was also left out of India's squad for the upcoming T20I series against New Zealand.
Speaking about his omission from the T20 World Cup squad, Gill said he respected the decision made by the Ajit Agarkar-led selection panel and will continue to work on his game. The ODI captain also insisted he is happy to be where he is in his career currently and is only focused on winning matches for India.
"Firstly, it is my belief that in my life, I am where I am supposed to be. Whatever is written in my destiny, I will have it. As a player, I want to win games for my team, but having said that, I respect the selectors’ decision. I wish the T20 team the very best. I hope that they win the World Cup," Gill said in the presser.
Why was Gill left out of India's T20 World Cup 2026 squad?
Gill made his return to India's T20I setup during the Asia Cup 2025 last year. He not only regained his opening spot in the playing XI but was also named the vice-captain, a move that left many surprised. He replaced Samson to open the batting with Abhishek Sharma.
However, Gill failed to replicate Samson's heroics at the top and failed to match the tempo that India wanted in T20Is. He also failed to produce big knocks consistently, managing only 291 runs in 15 innings, with the highest score of 47. As the experiment backfired, the selectors were forced to do a course correction ahead of the T20 World Cup 2026.
Gill was eventually left out, with Kishan being included as the backup opener. Samson is likely to return as an opener for India in the upcoming T20I series against New Zealand and the T20 World Cup 2026 next month. Gill reportedly received no communication from the selectors regarding his T20 World Cup exclusion and got to know about his snub on the day of the squad announcement.