India’s Test skipper Shubman Gill’s appointment as Team India’s T20I vice-captain ahead of the Asia Cup made headlines recently. Gill, who did well in his debut Test series as captain in England, was appointed as the vice-captain in the shortest format of the game, as the BCCI announced a 15-man squad for the upcoming Asia Cup.

“The last time when he played T20Is for India, post (the) T20 World Cup (2024), when we went to Sri Lanka (in July 2024), not (the tour of) Zimbabwe. I was leading then and he was the vice-captain and that’s when we started a new cycle for (the next) T20 World Cup. After that he got busy with all the Test series (at home). He did not get the opportunity to play T20 cricket because he got busy playing Test cricket and also the Champions Trophy. He is there in the squad (now) and we are happy to have him,” said Suryakumar Yadav.

However, according to a report in The Indian Express, Shubman Gill’s appointment as vice-captain came after a lot of deliberation as well. Notably, Gill was never the first choice as the Ajit Agarkar-led selection panel had another player in mind, including Axar Patel, who was earlier the vice-captain of the team as well. But Gill was eventually given the nod as Gautam Gambhir was one of the names in favour of Gill’s appointment as well.

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“It was the matter that consumed most of the time at Tuesday’s selection meeting and head coach Gautam Gambhir, who joined online, was also of the view that India needs to groom someone for the future and Gill, who turns 26 next month, was the most eligible candidate,” the report said.

“Gill wasn’t the first choice initially and some people felt that Axar Patel should continue the role of vice-captaincy. But the overall mood at the selection meeting was that it’s better to invest in a player who is likely to serve Indian cricket for long. The panel couldn’t find any other candidate whom they can hand over responsibility for the next five years. As Gill is already leading in Test cricket, the selectors felt it was a right time to prepare him to take over from Surya some time in the future.,” it stated.

“With the Ajit Agarkar-led selection committee picking Gill in the T20 squad, for the first time this year, it seems likely that the Test captain, who had a dream outing on the recent England tour, will feature in the playing XI during the tournament to be played in the UAE from September 9-28,” it further added.