Shubman Gill omitted as ex-opener names alternative T20 World Cup squad

Even as Shubman Gill grapples with his surprise omission from India’s T20 World Cup squad, the star batter has suffered another setback — he has also been left out of Aakash Chopra’s alternative 15-man squad.

The exclusion, according to the former India opener, effectively places Gill outside the country’s top 30 T20 players. Chopra, now a senior pundit, undertook a light-hearted exercise of picking a squad from players ignored by the Ajit Agarkar-led selection committee. In doing so, he took a pointed dig at the ongoing debate around Gill’s suitability as an anchor in the T20 format.

Explaining his decision, Chopra said that if the Indian team felt an accumulator was no longer required in the current T20 setup, he saw no reason to include one either. “You will ask why I have not picked Shubman Gill. When the Indian team doesn’t need an anchor, why will I have him as an anchor? Shubman Gill is the only anomaly,” Chopra said.

“We have left him for Test cricket and ODI cricket. According to the narrative that has been created, we have not picked him. Many people say I was doing PR work for Gill — take it, I have not picked him,” he added.

Gill’s omission from the official T20 World Cup squad was among the biggest surprises of Saturday’s selection meeting. The vice-captain was dropped, while wicketkeeper Ishan Kishan was recalled following his title-winning hundred for Jharkhand in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy final earlier this month. Chief selector Ajit Agarkar later said Gill’s ability was not in doubt, but the team management wanted a backup wicketkeeper.

India will head into the T20 World Cup with Sanju Samson and Abhishek Sharma as first-choice openers, with Kishan named as reserve.

Gill was recalled to the T20I side during the Asia Cup, leading to the break-up of the successful Samson–Abhishek opening partnership. Despite being appointed vice-captain, Gill’s relatively conservative approach came under scrutiny. Samson was pushed into the middle order despite scoring three hundreds as an opener, while Rinku Singh’s role as a finisher was also impacted.

After 15 T20Is, the experiment ended. Gill scored 291 runs at an average of 24.25 and a strike rate of 137.26 during that period.

Aakash Chopra’s alternative T20 World Cup squad

Playing group: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shreyas Iyer (captain), Rishabh Pant, Jitesh Sharma, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Krunal Pandya, Deepak Chahar, Yuzvendra Chahal, Mohammed Siraj, Bhuvneshwar Kumar
Bench: Mohammed Shami, KL Rahul, Vipraj Nigam, Shashank Singh

Chopra named Jaiswal and Gaikwad as his opening pair. Pant and Jitesh Sharma were picked as wicketkeepers, with KL Rahul included only as cover and not part of the playing XI.

Among the more surprising inclusions were Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Krunal Pandya, whom Chopra backed despite their absence from recent T20I plans, citing their IPL performances.