Asia Cup 2025: Shubman Gill Picked In India’s Squad As Vice-Captain.

Shubman Gill has made a comeback to India’s T20I squad for the Asia Cup and has become the vice-captain as well replacing Axar Patel in that role. The 15-member squad picked by the selection committee on Tuesday, will be led by Suryakumar Yadav which also includes Abhishek Sharma and Sanju Samson as the other two opening candidates. With Shubman Gill as vice-captain, he will be the front-runner for one of the slots at the top of the order.

Ajit Agarkar’s thoughts on Shubman Gill picked as vice-captain. 

Speaking to reporters in Mumbai, Ajit Agarkar said: “We obviously see some leadership qualities in him, and his form in England was what we were hoping for. He exceeded all our expectations, which is a great sign when there’s so much pressure as captain.”

The middle and lower order batting options include Suryakumar Yadavm Tilak Varma, Rinku Singh and Jitesh Sharma, who could be the first-choice wicket-keeper if India decide to open with Gill and Abhishek. There are also three all-rounders in Axar Patel, Hardik Pandya, and Shivam Dube. The specialist bowling options are Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, Varun Chakaravarthy and Harshit Rana who also provides some extra batting depth.

Ajit Agarkar’s Views on Exclusion of Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shreyas Iyer. 

There was no place in the team for Yashasvi Jaiswal who was instead named among the five reserve players alongside Prasidh Krishna, Washington Sundar, Riyan Parag and Dhruv Jurel. Shreyas Iyer, who scored 604 runs at a strike rate of 175 in IPL 2025 and led Punjab Kings to the final, also did not find a place in the 15.

Agarkar said: “With regards to Yashasvi, it’s just unfortunate again. There’s Abhishek Sharma: what’s he’s done over the last year or so- plus he can bowl a little bit- he gives us that option if required. One of these guys was going to miss out. Yashasvi just has to wait for his chance.”

“With regards to Shreyas, who can he replace? No fault of his, nor is it ours. At the moment, you can pick just 15. So, he will have to wait for his chance.”

Shubman Gill was vice-captain in the previous T20I series he had played in Sri Lanka in July 2024 but he had not been picked in any of the subsequent series as India prioritised his appearances in Test and ODI formats. Axar was then appointed vice-captain for the home T20Is against England in January. Gill’s return to the side comes on the back of his contributions to India’s Champions Trophy triumph earlier this year and his record-breaking run as a batter in the five-Test series in England, where he led India to a 2-2 draw against England. He had scored 650 runs for Gujarat Titans in IPL 2025 at a strike rate of 155.87.

Suryakumar Yadav’s views on Shubman Gill and prospects for Team India. 

Speaking after the selection meeting in Mumbai Suryakumar said: “Last time when he played T20 for India, post T20 World Cup when we went to Sri Lanka- not Zimbabwe- when I was leading, he was the vice-captain. So, that’s where we started a new cycle. After that, he got busy with all the Test series, and he didn’t get an opportunity to play T20s because he was busy playing Test cricket and Champions Trophy. So, he’s there in the squad, and we’re happy to have him.”

The Asia Cup will be India’s first T20I assignment since the bilateral series against England at home in January. India are placed in Group A, alongside Pakistan, Oman and UAE. Their first game is against UAE in Dubai on September 10, after which they play Pakistan in Dubai on September 14, and Oman in Abu Dhabi on September 19.

Suryakumar said: “This is the first big tournament we are playing since the 2024 T20 World Cup. We have played three-four bilateral series. It’s a good tournament to test ourselves. After this, there are a lot of T20s- close to 20-22 T20s in total- before we play our first game in the 2026 World Cup, so I think the journey starts from the Asia Cup.”

India’s Squad for Asia Cup:

Suryakumar Yadav (c), Shubman Gill (vc), Hardik Pandya, Arshdeep Singh, Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Jitesh Sharma, Jasprit Bumrah, Varun Chakaravarthy, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Rinku Singh, Sanju Samson.

Reserve Players: Prasidh Krishna, Washington Sundar, Riyan Paragm Dhruv Jurel, Yashasvi Jaiswal.

It will be interesting to see how things go and how the team performs for the Asia Cup in UAE.

Also Read: Asia Cup 2025: Shubman Gill In Fray Of Things In T20I Setup