On August 19 (Tuesday), the Indian team's squad for the Asia Cup 2025 was announced. The selectors appointed a 15-member squad under the captaincy of Suryakumar Yadav. Esteemed players like Jasprit Bumrah and Shubman Gill returned to the T20 team. However, there's no place for opener Yashasvi Jaiswal, middle-order batsman Shreyas Iyer, and fast bowler Mohammed Siraj.
A major shift in leadership roles saw Shubman Gill reinstated as the vice-captain of the Indian T20 team for the upcoming Asia Cup. During the five-match T20 series against England at home earlier this year, Axar Patel carried the vice-captain responsibilities. Yet, this mantle has been removed from him now.
This constant game of musical chairs for the vice-captaincy within Indian cricket has been unsettling. Last June, with the T20 World Cup victory under their belt, Hardik Pandya served as the vice-captain. Post-triumph, Shubman Gill was appointed as the vice-captain for the Sri Lanka tour across both the ODI and T20 formats. During the absence of main players, Gill captained the Indian T20 squad on the Zimbabwe tour.
A Triumphant Return for Shubman Gill
Shubman Gill disappeared from T20 Internationals following the Zimbabwe tour, directing his focus toward ODI and Test cricket. Thus, Axar Patel took on the vice-captaincy for the home T20 series against England. Following a stellar performance as captain in Test cricket during their recent England tour, Shubman Gill has not only returned to the T20 sector but has also been named vice-captain once more.
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These frequent changes have put the team management and selectors' decisions under scrutiny. Why are responsibilities being taken away so quickly? The selectors and management's approach to vice-captaincy seems to lack consistency. Such shifts have historical precedence in Indian cricket, such as what happened with the current head, Gautam Gambhir.
Source: aajtak
Back in 2012, when the Indian team failed to reach the finals of the triangular series in Australia, Gautam Gambhir was stripped of his vice-captaincy, with Virat Kohli taking over. Gambhir was announced as the vice-captain for the Test team during the 2011 tour of England and continued in the same role for the Australia tour's Test and CB series.
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Gautam Gambhir's Reflections on the Vice-captaincy Change
The episode of being relieved from vice-captaincy still resonates with Gautam Gambhir. In an interview with Lallantop, Gambhir addressed the incident. He remarked, ‘In the series being discussed, I was the second-highest scoring Indian batsman. The rotation policy was implemented during that series, and the finals were contested between Australia and Sri Lanka. Dhoni was the captain, and I was vice-captain. Post-series, we were headed to the Asia Cup in Bangladesh, with Duncan Fletcher as our coach.’
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Gambhir further elaborates, ‘Losing the Test series 0-4 in Australia and then the triangular series put Dhoni under pressure. The only alteration from the CB series onwards was replacing the vice-captain (Gautam Gambhir) with Virat Kohli. This was unprecedented in either Indian or global sports history — a vice-captain was removed while the captain stayed on. I even questioned Duncan Fletcher about it, and he claimed it wasn’t his decision; it was the selectors’ choice. Throughout my career, I never called any selector, for my reputation is above all else, and it will stay that way.’
The Commonwealth Bank (CB) series, as Gambhir emphasized, gained fame due to the rotation policy. In this series, captained by MS Dhoni, notable players like Virender Sehwag, Sachin Tendulkar, and Gautam Gambhir were rested in several matches, which sparked controversy. Gambhir played seven matches in the series, scoring 308 runs at an average of 44, ranking second among Indian batsmen behind Virat Kohli, who amassed 373 runs over eight matches.
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Despite a commendable performance in the CB series, Gambhir's vice-captaincy duties were subsequently stripped, leaving him disgruntled at the time. That same year, under his leadership, the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) clinched their first Indian Premier League (IPL) championship, showcasing Gambhir’s exceptional captaincy skills. In the IPL final, guided by Gambhir, KKR defeated Chennai Super Kings (CSK) led by MS Dhoni by five wickets...
