"Wanted to have somebody who can also learn from a couple of senior guys"- Ajit Agarkar on rationale behind Shubman Gill's appointment as vice-captain
Team India's chief selector Ajit Agarkar provided a detailed explanation behind appointing Shubman Gill as the vice-captain in ODIs and T20Is for the upcoming tour of Sri Lanka. The Men in Blue play three T20Is followed by as many ODIs in Sri Lanka, starting July 27.
Among several selection moves that bemused experts and fans, Gill's appointment as deputy to Suryakumar Yadav in T20Is and Rohit Sharma in ODIs topped the list.
However, Ajit Agarkar addressed the move with the rationale of never having to face a situation that occurred when Hardik was injured and Rohit was away from T20Is.
"This time, in T20Is, when Hardik Pandya did get injured, that was a bit of a challenge because Rohit was also not playing. Thankfully, Rohit was back and he could come in and lead. We don't want that situation going forward again. Shubman is a guy we feel is a three-format player, firstly. And he seems to show a lot of good qualities over the last year or so. That's why we wanted to have somebody who can also learn from a couple of senior guys who are there," said Agarkar.
He added:
"Surya is there. Rohit is still around. We don't face the same challenge again -- suddenly try and look for a new captain in case there is an injury or loss of form. That's the idea again. He has shown some decent leadership qualities. So we want him to get some experience and build going forward. There are no guarantees in life, but at this point, that's how it looks."
Shubman Gill recently captained the second-string Indian side in the five-match T20I series in Zimbabwe.
After losing the opener in a shocker, Team India bounced back to win the series convincingly by a 4-1 margin.
"Don't want to burden someone who is coming back after a year out of the game" - Ajit Agarkar
Ajit Agarkar further stated that Rishabh Pant's recent return from injury and KL Rahul being out of the T20I side for a while played a role in appointing Gill as vice-captain.
While Gill boasts an incredible T20I record with an average of over 61 and a strike rate of 103.46, his T20I numbers are mediocre. He averages under 30 at a strike rate of 139.50 in 19 T20I outings.
"Rishabh has been out for a long time. We need to get him back to playing. That's the first thing. We don't want to burden someone who is coming back after a year out of the game. KL Rahul has not been part of T20Is now for a little while. Like I said, if you look at some of the feedback that we have got, we have got a chance to hit the reset button a little bit. We have a bit more time to plan, we want to see for the next two years," said Agarkar.
Besides leading the Indian side for the first time in the recent Zimbabwean tour, Gill also had a first taste of captaincy experience in the 2024 IPL season.
He led the Gujarat Titans (GT) in IPL 2024 following Hardik Pandya's departure but the side won only five out of 12 completed games to miss the playoffs.