Agarkar On Gill’s Omission From T20 WC Squad

Mumbai: Chief selector Ajit Agarkar on Saturday identified Shubman Gill’s recent lack of runs and combination compulsions as reasons for his omission from India’s T20 World Cup squad. Gill, who was recently appointed as the T20 national vice-captain, was unable to bat in the last home series against Sri Lanka, scoring 4, 0 and 28 before missing the fifth match due to injury.

“We know what a quality player he is, but maybe he’s missing some runs at the moment,” Agarkar said at the press conference for India’s squad announcement.

“It’s unfortunate to have missed the last World Cup as well because we went with different combinations. But more than anything, combinations are important… When you pick 15, someone has to miss and unfortunately at that point it happens to be Gill,” Agarkar added.

Agarkar emphasized that they wanted to have an extra wicketkeeper at the top and for this they had to sacrifice pure batting.

In this instance, Ishan Kishan, who had a brilliant performance in the just-concluded Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, found favor ahead of Jitesh Sharma, who was used more as a low-order pace batsman.

“We are looking at the combination. If the wicketkeeper is going to bat at the top, Jitesh is there right now and he hasn’t done much wrong. But we need to look at the combination and a wicketkeeper at the top,” said the former India pacer.

Indian skipper Suryakumar Yadav also hinted at the combination requirement as the reason behind Gills’ omission.

“We went to Sri Lanka after the T20 WC (2024) and scored 200 and Gill was a part of it. We wanted to have a wicketkeeper at the top and Rinku or Washy (in the order), so we have an extra wicketkeeper at the top. There is no question about (Gill’s) form,” Suryakumar said.

Suryakumar also did not dwell much on his protracted lean phase and expressed confidence that he will rediscover his explosive personality just in time for the upcoming T20 World Cup.

Suryakumar has not been firing all year, averaging close to 15 in T20s and his form has been a talking point ahead of next year’s ICC showdown, where India will attempt to defend their title from February 7.

“I know what to do and I will do it. You will definitely see Surya as a batsman but this phase took a little longer. Other players have also regained their form in the past,” he said.

The 35-year-old admitted that playing in the World Cup on home soil might be difficult but he is enjoying it.

“Playing in front of the home fans is a good responsibility and challenge for me. The squad looks balanced and we have filled the positions well. When we see the squad, we already have 2-3 ready combinations,” he added.