Shubman Gill’s T20I elevation lays bare BCCI’s long-term vision as India cricket seek next superstar

It’s Shubman Gill’s world, and we’re just living in it. Tuesday’s squad announcement for the Asia Cup proved just that.

A lot was said about the dashing batter from the border town of Fazilka, Punjab when he had made his international debut during the tour of New Zealand in early 2019. Gill, after all, was one of the shining stars in India’s triumphant U-19 World Cup campaign the year before.

It was only a matter of time before Gill began churning out those performances at the senior level, whether in international cricket or in the Indian Premier League, which would then lead to comparisons with iconic batter and leader Virat Kohli.

Fast forward to 2025, and Gill truly finds himself on top of the cricketing world. And the funny thing is that his life has transformed for the better in a matter of just three months.

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Gill, after all, was named Rohit Sharma's successor as Test captain in May after the ‘Hitman’ abruptly announced his retirement along with Kohli. He would then go on a record-breaking spree in his maiden Test series as captain as well as batting at the No 4 spot, playing a key role in helping his team walk away with a 2-2 draw .

And now, the 25-year-old returns to the T20I side not just as a vital cog in the batting order but as the vice-captain more than a year after his last appearance for the Men in Blue in the format.

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One step closer to leadership across formats? 

The move all but confirms one thing – that the Indian team management as well as the board views him as the next all-formats captain. And that Tuesday’s announcement was another step in that direction.

There were doubts among experts and fans alike when Gill was first named Test captain, especially the perception of him being thrown into the deep end by touring a country where he had struggled with the bat in the past.

Gill would silence his critics by amassing 754 runs in the five-Test series – only the legendary Don Bradman has scored more runs (812) in a Test series as captain – leading his team by example in the process.

The manner in which he dominated the English bowlers in the recent tour, as well as in past IPL editions such as 2023, along with the leadership that he has exhibited so far with the Gujarat Titans as well as the Indian Test team further highlights the fact that he is the right man for the job.

‘We’re happy to have him’

During the press conference at the BCCI's Mumbai headquarters on Tuesday , Suryakumar Yadav reminded reporters that Gill was actually the vice-captain in the shortest format before a hectic schedule with Test cricket as a the priority forced him to focus on other formats.

“Last time when he played T20 post World Cup, when we went to Sri Lanka, he was vice-captain. That’s where we started new cycle for T20 World Cup. After that we got busy with Test cricket, and he didn’t get opportunities. We’re happy to have him,” Surya said at the press conference.

There were reports of Gill possibly being overlooked for the Asia Cup in favour of maintaining continuity in the Indian T20 team, which has won 28 out of its last 31 matches.

However, an individual who is said to count both head coach Gautam Gambhir and chairman of selectors Ajit Agarkar among his fans isn’t likely to be left out of a squad, especially for an event as important as the Asia Cup.

His inclusion will, of course, come at the expense of other talented players. With Gill now likely to open alongside statemate as well as U-19 batchmate Abhishek Sharma at the top of the order and slots booked all the way till the lower middle-order, wicketkeeper-batter Sanju Samson will most likely have to warm the bench in the Asia Cup and possibly even in next year’s T20 World Cup.

Samson has done little wrong to lose his place in the playing XI – he had, after all, smashed back-to-back centuries in the shortest format for the Men in Blue last year, and would end up with three centuries in a space of five outings as a result.

Problem of plenty strikes Indian cricket again

Then again, Indian cricket has been dealing with a problem of plenty for a while now, and that comes purely down to the success of India’s domestic system and the IPL along with strong leadership and guidance in the national teams over the years. The result – Team India having plenty of match-winning options for each position or department across formats.

Coming back to Gill, he isn’t likely to remain vice-captain too long. The BCCI and the team management might be seeing Suryakumar as their leader for the T20I format till the end of the T20 World Cup. Once that’s out of the way, he might be persuaded to give up his post for Gill, much like Rohit in Tests earlier this year.

“This squad announcement sort of tells you the mindset of the selectors. With the selection of Shubman, in time, he is going to be an all-format captain, and that’s where they are sort of positioning him,” former India and KKR assistant coach Abhishek Nayar said on JioHotstar.

“Great pick, terrific player. I’m sure he’s going to follow the mindset of being attacking, having that approach. And I feel it’s going to be a very, very interesting next 12 months in Shubman Gill’s life,”

All that will be left for Gill will be the ODI format and the 2027 ICC World Cup. And even though both Rohit and Kohli have expressed their desire to play that tournament, the former presumably as captain, it won’t come as a surprise if the powers of Indian cricket are already visualising Gill wear the captain’s armband in cricket’s showpiece event.