India’s Test Skipper Shubman Gill has been named as the vice-captain for the upcoming and much-awaited Asia Cup. His selection has been criticized a lot by the fans who believe that Gill is not T20 material. Fans also believe that India should’ve continued with the tested opening pair of Sanju Samson and Abhishek Sharma only.
The batting pair has provided some immaculate and fiery starts to the team in the recent past. Gill’s selection in the team has made it difficult for Samson to find his place in the playing 11. India will play its first match of the tournament against the United Arab Emirates at the Dubai International Stadium.
Arguably it is a harsh call on Samson’s part. However, Gill’s performance in the shortest format of the game is truly commendable. The right-handed opening batter, who captained the Gujarat Titans in this year’s IPL, was among the top five highest run getters in the tournament. He scored 650 runs, striking at over 155, and averaging 50. This is some authoritative batting.
IPL 2025 is just another example of what Gill has done in the shortest format. Not to forget his 2023 IPL season, where the 25-year-old prodigy scored close to 900 runs. As far as his selection as the vice-captain is concerned, there are speculations that India is looking at him as an all-format skipper.
To be fair on Gill’s part, it is also a fact that he is a much more balanced batter than Samson. The latter is one of those who likes to hit sixes for fun. His two 100s against South Africa in the same series in late 2024 were truly a delight to watch. But what’s been an area of concern is his ability to score consistently.
He had a nightmare of a series against England earlier this year, followed by a below-average IPL season. Gill is more of a balanced batter who can pace his innings as per the situation. Opening along with the ever-so-stylish Abhishek, Gill will provide a much-needed balance in the team.
Former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan also believes that Gill has drastically improved his strike rate in the T20 format, which is a green flag for Team India. “I think Shubman Gill has improved his T20 cricket a lot, particularly in the last few seasons, including in the IPL.
When he first began at KKR, I vaguely recall his strike rate hovering around 125. That has now improved to 150. Last year’s IPL saw him strike at over 150 while consistently piling up runs at a higher rate,” Irfan told India Today.
Another reason why his selection is justified is the nature of the surface in Dubai. It is not one of those grounds where 200 is scored often. If you look at the whole Indian batting lineup, which includes the likes of the fiery batters like skipper Surya Kumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Rinku Singh, and Abhishek, Gill is the only batter who can actually pace the innings in case of a collapse.
Barring the 2025 Champions Trophy triumph, the Dubai International Stadium is not one of the venues India has dominated. All in all, at a venue where the average first innings score is hardly 170, you need a balanced batter to bat you out of trouble when required.
Authored By- Shreshth Kapil
I also believe Gill is comparatively a more balanced batter with a remarkable strike rate which can help the team in this year’s asia cup. Greatly captured all the points! 👍🏻
Shubman Gill is an all format batter, who will play s crucial role in India’s Asia Cup aa well as World Cup Campaign.