BCCI chief selector Ajit Agarkar on Monday (July 22) opened up on the move to appoint Shubman Gill as the India’s vice-captain in white-ball cricket.
Gill will serve as the deputy to Suryakumar Yadav and Rohit Sharma in the forthcoming T20I and ODI tour of Sri Lanka.
This decision surprised many as Hardik Pandya was the designated vice-captain at the T20 World Cup 2024, while KL Rahul had led the Indian team in its last ODI series against South Africa.
"Rishabh has been out for a long time. We need to get him back to playing. That's the first thing. We don't want to burden someone who is coming back after a year out of the game. KL Rahul has not been part of T20Is now for a little while. Like I said, if you look at some of the feedback that we have got, we have got a chance to hit the reset button a little bit. We have a bit more time to plan, we want to see for the next two years," Agarkar told reporters.
The chairman of the selection committee also spoke about the challenges when Hardik was injured and Rohit was unavailable to lead.
"This time, in T20Is, when Hardik Pandya did get injured, that was a bit of a challenge because Rohit was also not playing. Thankfully, Rohit was back and he could come in and lead. We don't want that situation going forward again," he added.
Shubman Gill recently led India’s second-string team to a 4-1 series win over Zimbabwe in five T20Is. Earlier this year, he was handed the captaincy of IPL franchise Gujarat Titans after Hardik Pandya completed a high-profile trade and went back to Mumbai Indians.
Gill’s stocks as a batter have also grown by leaps and bounds in the last 18 months. He was the leading run-getter in ODIs in 2023 and played a key role in India’s Test series victory over England at home earlier this year.
"Shubman is a guy we feel is a three-format player, firstly. And he seems to show a lot of good qualities over the last year or so. That's why we wanted to have somebody who can also learn from a couple of senior guys who are there. Surya is there. Rohit is still around. We don't face the same challenge again -- suddenly try and look for a new captain in case there is an injury or loss of form. That's the idea again. He has shown some decent leadership qualities. So we want him to get some experience and build going forward. There are no guarantees in life, but at this point, that's how it looks," Agarkar concluded.
India will play three T20Is and as many ODIs on the tour of Sri Lanka, starting on July 27.
India’s T20I Squad: Suryakumar Yadav (C), Shubman Gill (VC), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rinku Singh, Riyan Parag, Rishabh Pant (WK), Sanju Samson (WK), Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Akshar Patel, Washington Sundar, Ravi Bishnoi, Arshdeep Singh, Khaleel Ahmed, Mohammed Siraj
India’s ODI Squad: Rohit Sharma (C), Shubman Gill (VC), Virat Kohli, KL Rahul (WK), Rishabh Pant (WK), Shreyas Iyer, Shivam Dube, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Washington Sundar, Arshdeep Singh, Riyan Parag, Akshar Patel, Khaleel Ahmed, Harshit Rana.
(With India Today Inputs)
