The anticipation grows as we head closer to the announcement of India’s 15-member squad for the Asia Cup 2025. Who will make the cut? Who won’t? These are the two questions that are dominating the thoughts of every Indian cricket fan’s mind. Whenever a squad announcement for a big series is awaited, speculations run wild. And this time, all the buzz is around Shubman Gill. After a blockbuster series against India, which saw the Indian Test captain pummelled 754 runs at an average of 75, with four centuries, Gill was believed to be promoted up the ladder. Some reports suggested that Gill could be fast-tracked into being given India’s T20 captaincy too. With Suryakumar Yadav‘s fitness being a concern, Gill could be the man to lead India in the Asia Cup. However, the rumours died down… drastically… to the extent that, forget captaincy, Gill may struggle to break it into India’s squad either.
A report in the Times of India adds more drama to the matter. It states that while Gill has done nothing wrong regarding his recent form, the batter may not be in the mix. Gill has impressed both head coach Gautam Gambhir and the BCCI’s chairman of selectors, Ajit Agarkar. He is even considered as someone possessing Virat Kohli‘s traits. Still, it’s not enough to convince the BCCI about his credentials as a T20I player just yet.
“Gill is a terrific batsman, all the selectors and head coach Gautam Gambhir are huge fans of his batting, and he is rated almost as highly as Virat Kohli in India’s cricket circles in terms of potential. However, he doesn’t fit into the T20 scheme of things right now. Presently, the idea is to persist with ‘keeper-bat Sanju Samson and Abhishek Sharma as openers, with Tilak Varma coming in at No. 3 and skipper Suryakumar at No. 4. If you see, Abhishek and Varma are rated as the No. 1 and No. 2 batters in T20Is in the ICC rankings currently. How can you drop them?” a BCCI source told TOI.
Why is Shubman Gill below in the pecking order?
Gill’s recent T20I form is not his enemy. He enjoyed a solid IPL 2025, scoring 650 runs as captain of the Gujarat Titans, but with openers Abhishek Sharma and Sanju Samson – his direct competition – in such sublime form, leaving them out is simply not an option. Samson has been in red-hot form for India, smashing three centuries last year, while Abhishek has been rewarded for his amazing consistency with the No. 1 ranking in the ICC men’s T20I batters for men. Just earlier this year, Abhishek bludgeoned a 54-ball 135 against England.
Besides, Tilak Varma at No. 3 has captured the imagination like never before, pummelling consecutive centuries against South Africa last November and continuing the momentum in the IPL for his franchise, the Mumbai Indians. With such numbers stacked against him, Gill is likely to be omitted from the squad, unless the selectors pick him in the reserves, similar to the T20 World Cup last year.
The Asia Cup 2025 gets underway on September 9, with India opening their campaign against the UAE the day after, followed by the blockbuster clash against Pakistan on Sunday, September 14.
