India’s vice-captain Shubman Gill was a late exclusion from the T20 World Cup 2026 squad. Gill’s lack of form in T20Is led to him missing out on a T20 World Cup spot again. However, the ODI and Test captain seemed to believe he was playing at the big stage until minutes before the press conference.
As per a report by Cricbuzz, Gill was informed about his exclusion only minutes after the meeting before the squad announcement. The report did not mention whether it was one of the selectors or skipper Suryakumar Yadav who called and broke the news to him.
Gill who ended the year 2025 without a T20I fifty to his name, was preparing for the ODI and T20I series against New Zealand next month, followed by T20 World Cup 2026. He was ruled out of the last two T20Is of the five-T20I series against South Africa owing to a right foot impact injury.
In Gill’s absence, Sanju Samson grabbed the opportunity with both hands. Opening alongside Abhishek Sharma, he scored 37 runs from 22 balls in the final T20I played at Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad.
What Agarkar and Suryakumar said about Gill’s exclusion
“You’re looking at combinations at the moment. Someone has to miss out when you take 15. And unfortunately, it’s him (Gill). It’s not because he’s not a good player,” Ajit Agarkar, chairman of selection committee, explained the snub.
"It's not about form, it's about combination. We wanted to have a keeper at the top. We know the quality that Gill brings," Suryakumar said at the press conference.
Changes triggered by Gill’s exclusion -
As Gill was dropped, India roped in an in-form Ishan Kishan as the back-up wicketkeeper-batter who can bat at the top. It also led to Jitesh Sharma facing the snub with Rinku Singh replacing him.
Kishan is set to play his first T20I after a long gap of over two years. He has been in tremendous form, scoring over 500 runs in Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT) 2025, leading his team to the title. He scored a century in the final against Haryana as well.