Shubman Gill Poised For T20I Return; Likely Vice-Captaincy In Asia Cup

Shubman Gill is likely to make his T20I return and take on the vice-captain role for India in the upcoming Asia Cup, starting on 9 September in the UAE. The Test captain is expected to be named in the squad, marking his first appearance in the format since the 2024 white-ball tour of Sri Lanka.

Gill’s last stint in T20Is came under head coach Gautam Gambhir’s first assignment after the T20 World Cup in 2024. He recently impressed in his maiden assignment as Test captain, scoring 754 runs to secure a 2-2 draw against England in a five-match series.

Vice-Captaincy Opportunity

According to RevSportz, Gill will not only feature in the T20I setup again but is likely to deputise for Suryakumar Yadav, the current captain. This change follows the period where Axar Patel served as vice-captain after the retirements of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma from T20Is last year.

India will once again have Suryakumar leading the team, as he will likely fit for the tournament. His captaincy record stands at 17 wins in 22 matches since taking over full-time after the 2024 Men’s T20 World Cup.

The Indian skipper is showing strong signs of recovery, batting in the nets during rehabilitation at the BCCI’s Centre of Excellence. His last competitive outing came in June for Triumph Knights Mumbai North East in the Mumbai T20 League, where he scored 122 runs in four innings.

In 83 T20Is, Suryakumar has scored 2,598 runs at an average of 38.2 and a strike rate of 167.07, cementing his status as one of the most destructive batsmen in the format.

Gill’s likely promotion underscores his growing leadership role in the Indian dressing room across formats.

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