India T20 World Cup squad: Why Shubman Gill was dropped – at the last minute | Cricket News – The Tech Word News

Shubman Gill is bowled by South Africa’s Marco Jansen during the third T20 International cricket match of the India vs South Africa series at the HPCA Stadium in Dharamshala, Himachal Pradesh. (PTI photo) NEW DELHI: Hours before the T20 World Cup squad was announced in Mumbai on Saturday, Indian vice-captain Shubman Gill was with the team in Ahmedabad. His participation in the match, as reported by TimesofIndia.com earlier, was touch and go due to a toe injury. The management did not want to risk pushing him for the fifth T20I against South Africa. They also explored the possibility of an injection for a “small niggle”, but the decision makers, with New Zealand’s T20I and T20 World Cup in mind, decided against it.Gill sat down, but few would read the undertones of “cautious decision.”

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“Shubman Gill was able to play as the niggle was minor and there was no fracture etc but it was a cautious decision not to rush him into the match,” a team source said.A few days ago, when the team arrived in Lucknow for the fourth T20I, there was a temptation in the think tank to try out Sanju Samson. A toe injury gave them this opportunity. The match was abandoned due to fog, but there was another chance to test the wicketkeeper-bat at the top of the order in Ahmedabad. A blistering 22-ball 37 and 63-run stand with Abhishek Sharma was enough to knock Gill out of not only the Playing XI but also the team.When Gill returned to the T20I setup during the Asia Cup in September, he started Abhishek and that forced Samson to bat lower down the order. In the four innings he played, the right-handed Samson batted just once at No.3 and was largely given the middle-order slot. A role he hadn’t played in the past and clearly didn’t seem comfortable with. It is understood that the wicketkeeper-batsman had a word with the management in this regard and asked for a top-order role.This was the main reason why he was tested at No. 3 in the T20I against Australia at the MCG and continued in every match he played for Kerala in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. Two half-century and some 40 years later, he sent another reminder to the selectors.However, Gill did not get the kind of support enjoyed by captain Suryakumar Yadav even after a long bad patch with the bat and was left out of the squad list. A move that few saw coming and surprised everyone.It was further learned that there was no dialogue with India’s ODI and Test captain in Ahmedabad and he was informed about the moments when the selection was not made on Saturday before the meeting.“We spoke to Shubman Gill before the meeting. Obviously we can’t give details but he explained the combination challenge. It’s unfortunate for him but at the end of the day you need the best combination for the World Cup,” said a BCCI official.Ajit Agarkar explained Gill’s call and why the selectors explored different options at the top of the order.“It’s more to do with the combination we want to play or what the team management is comfortable playing,” Agarkar said. “Their thoughts are… who’s going to bat at the top? Abhishek has obviously done what he’s been doing for the last year. And we felt the wicket at the top gives us a lot more strength than anywhere else in the team at the moment to play different combinations. There’s only 15 to choose from. Someone has to miss it. It’s him again. It’s not very good because he’s done it wrong.” These are the combinations that the team management is looking for,” he added.Captain Suryakumar Yadav also spoke in similar vein and why there is a need to have a wicket-taker at the top of the order. Surya played down the form and the lack of runs chattering around Gill saying it was purely a combination call.“It’s not about his form or anything else. It’s just about the combination. We wanted to have a goalkeeper up top. We wanted to have someone like Rinku Singh or maybe later Washington Sundar to have a different combination. So that’s why we brought in that extra goalkeeper up top.“And he is a great player. And there is no doubt about that. The only thing is that the situation is that we need wicketkeepers at the top of the order so that we have two to three good combinations that can win us the World Cup,” said Surya.With Gill out of the squad and Samson back at the top of the order, Jitesh Sharma was difficult to accommodate and the need for another top-order wicketkeeping option forced the selectors to look at the in-form Ishan Kishan – a player who was nowhere near India’s call-up a week ago, but a brilliant Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy opened the door for a late combination.The way this whole Gill non-selection has played out is convenient for everyone. Captain Suryakumar has no senior vice-captain breathing down his neck. Chief selector Agarkar rewarded the home performer. And coach Gambhir will not be accused of favoring Gill.India Squad for New Zealand T20I and T20 World Cup 2026: Suryakumar Yadav (captain), Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson (wk), Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel (vice-captain), Rinku Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, Varun Sun Chakaravarthy (Ishan Ki Washington, Varun).