Three Selfish Acts Which Prove Why Shubman Gill is Not The Ideal Candidate For Team India Captaincy at Least For Now

Shubman Gill led Team India to a 4-1 series win against Zimbabwe in his first assignment as skipper of the national team, but the young opener may not be the ideal candidate to takeover the role again at least for now.

Gill, who led Gujarat Titans in IPL 2024 earlier this year, was named captain for Zimbabwe tour after regulars, including Suryakumar Yadav and Hardik Pandya, were rested following their extertions at last month's T20 World Cup 2024 in the USA and Caribbean.

In his first match as skipper, India suffered a humilating loss to Zimbabwe after failing to chase down a paltry 116. The Men in Blue, however, fought back from a series-opening loss to clinch the series after winning four games on the trot under the captaincy of Gill.

The series win may have papered over some of the selfish acts of the skipper, who also didn't look his best with the bat, playing very slow knocks until the fifth and final match of the series. Here is a look his selfish acts and why he may not be the best choice as captain for India at least for now:

Three selfish acts which prove why Shubman Gill is not the ideal candidate for Team India captaincy

1. Demoting Abhishek Sharma to number three: Although this may have been a collective call of the team management on tour, Gill could have demoted himself rather than force Abhishek, who had smashed a century only in the previous game, down the order.

Right and left combination may have been a factor, but pushing Abhishek, who came in with a reputation of dominating the powerplay, was a selfish act to accomodate Yashasvi Jaiswal and he himself to retain the opening slot despite his struggles in the series.

2. Dropping Gaikwad from 5th T20I: Abhishek's demotion also pushed Ruturaj Gaikwad, an opener by trade, to number four and it also pushed the Chennai Super Kings batter out of the side in the final match of the series.

Gaikwad had scored a fifty in the second T20I, sharing a stand with Abhishek and also scored a quickfire knock when the captain scored a 49-ball 66 in the series. But the 27-year-old was dropped from the playing 11 despite not getting to face a single delivery in the fourth T20I.

3. Depriving Jaiswal a chance to score century: According to several fans, instead of letting his opening partner score a century, Gill was more keen on scoring his own half century when India needed 21 runs to win with at least 5 overs to spare.

Jaiswal ended the game unbeaten on 93 off 50 balls, while Gill remained undefeated on 58 off 39 balls as India chased down a target of 156 with 10 wickets in hand and 28 balls to spare.

All these acts will definitely see some of the openers on the tour of Zimbabwe get the axe in the next series in Sri Lanka. Although he finished the series as the leading run-scorer, the others are more suitable to T20.

Gill's strike-rate of 125.93 was the lowest when compared to the other opening batters in the squad - Jaiswal (165.88), Gaikwad (158.33) and Abhishek (174.65). But he is expected to retain his spot in the side for the upcoming series in Sri Lanka.