Suryakumar Yadav's captaincy in danger! Gautam Gambhir and selectors want to groom Shubman Gill as next T20I captain - Reports

Shubman Gill has been appointed as India’s T20I vice-captain for Asia Cup 2025.

According to the latest development, as reported in the Indian Express, Gautam Gambhir, the head coach, aims to groom Shubman Gill as the T20I captain of the Indian Cricket Team. This is the reason why the young batter was included in the team for Asia Cup 2025 as a vice-captain. 

Suryakumar Yadav, who will be turning 35 soon, will be leading India in Asia Cup 2025. During the selection meeting for the tournament, the discussion on finding Suryakumar’s long-term replacement was there, and this led selectors to pick Gill, who is the test captain. 

The reports claimed that Shubman Gill wasn’t considered the first choice initially, and the selectors were likely to retain Axar Patel as the vice-captain. But some decision makers thought that it’s better to invest in a player who is likely to serve Indian cricket for a long time. 

Selectors feel that it is the right time to groom Shubman Gill

They looked at the other potential options as well, but they couldn’t find any other candidate whom they could hand over responsibility for the next five years. With Shubman Gill leading the side in tests, there was a common belief that it was the right time to groom him. 

This blocked the place for Yashasvi Jaiswal, who impressed many with his batting on the England tour. The selectors will now need to find a place for Gill in the XI for Asia Cup 2025. It is expected that he will open the innings for India along with Abhishek Sharma. 

Shubman Gill’s inclusion came as a big surprise as he didn’t feature in the T20I this year. His last outing was in 2024 but in the Indian Premier League (IPL), he has been staggering since the last three seasons. In the last season, he mustered 650 runs and took his team to the playoffs. 

Asia Cup 2025 will begin on 9th September and will be played across two venues in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The Indian Cricket Team will open their campaign against the UAE on 10th September at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium in Dubai.

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