The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced India’s squad for the Asia Cup tournament on August 19, but the talks about the selection still continue. What will be the fate of Sanju Samson? Was Jasprit Bumrah actually needed? Why were Shreyas Iyer and Yashasvi Jaiswal axed? Who will be India’s number eight? These are some burning questions, but the inclusion of Shubman Gill has caused a huge stir among fans. Well, this time, among former Indian players too!
Gill’s selection beyond cricketing merit?
As per Robin Uthappa, who has shared the dressing room with Gill at the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), the Indian Test captain has primarily been chosen in India’s Asia Cup squad due to marketing and business standpoints. Fresh from leading India phenomenally in the England Test series and also being a run-machine in red-ball cricket, Gill was rewarded with a spot in the Indian T20I team.
This surprised a few, considering India had a settled and firing opening duo in Sanju Samson and Abhishek Sharma. However, the Indian T20I captain Suryakumar Yadav and BCCI chief selector Ajit Agarkar reasoned that Gill was India’s vice-captain in 2024 but didn’t got an opportunity to be in the side due to heavy workload in other formats. However, as per Uthappa, this is nothing but the continuation of BCCI pushing star culture.
“From an Indian cricket perspective, at all kinds of eras, you have always had superstars and they have backed a particular player for the sake of Indian cricket. I think that narrative is continued to be followed right now,” he said. “I think the marketing and business narrative also takes precedence, which is why he is brought in. You want certain superstars to take the game forward. Shubman is going to be one of them.”
While what Uthappa said isn’t untrue, Shubman Gill had an impressive IPL 2025 season with the Gujarat Titans (GT) as well, scoring 650 runs in 15 matches. He averaged 50 and had a strike rate of 155.88, hitting six fifties. With this consistent performance, he became the fourth-highest run-scorer in the tournament.
Gill is undroppable in one-dayers, and has now proved his worth in Tests as well. T20 internationals is his final format to pass. Dubbed as the next face of Indian batting, Gill has all the tools to be successful as well and the Asia Cup 2025 might just be his tournament to shut to critics up.
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