“On what basis has he been appointed the vice-captain?” - World Cup winner’s scathing attack on Shubman Gill after AUS vs IND 2025 2nd T20I

Former Indian opener Kris Srikkanth criticized the move to appoint Shubman Gill the T20I vice-captain after the latter's poor performance in the second T20I against Australia. Srikkanth believes the move has resulted in restricting India's flexibility in selection and overall team balance in the shortest format.

The 26-year-old was not part of the Indian T20I setup from the middle of last year until the start of the recent Asia Cup. However, before the continental tournament, Gill was recalled to the side and appointed the deputy to Suryakumar Yadav.

Unfortunately, things have gone south for Gill since his return in T20Is, with an underwhelming average of 24.14 in nine games.

Talking about the effects of Gill's inclusion in the Indian T20I setup, Srikkanth said on his YouTube channel (22:00):

"They won't drop Gill for the next three games. They are not worried about anything else. He is the vice-captain for the T20 World Cup, that's fixed now. It's also fixed that he's the future T20I captain. So they have to play with him and build the balance for the rest of the side. He's a certainty or else on what basis has he been appointed the vice-captain?"

He added:

"Yashasvi Jaiswal is waiting in the wings. He's not there in the team. With Gill's inclusion, the overall balance has gone for a toss so they aren't sure of what to do. Sanju Samson and Tilak Varma don't have a fixed position and Arshdeep Singh is missing out on the 11. The only good thing is the T20 World Cup is in India so they'll escape."

The former captain believes talented opener Yashasvi Jaiswal is unfortunate to miss out on the T20I playing XI.

"India has a lot of players like Abhishek. If players like Yashasvi Jaiswal are given an opportunity, they'll utilise it. But now he has no window to come into the side. Only Hardik Pandya can come into the 11 and nobody else. Jaiswal also came through the IPL and has an outstanding record in all formats and the IPL. I am not sure why he isn't playing with a brilliant IPL and T20I record. Give him the same opportunities, he'll destroy bowlers at the top," said Srikkanth.

Jaiswal is not part of the Indian T20I squad for the ongoing Australian tour despite boasting a stellar record with an average of over 36 and a strike rate of 164.31 in 23 matches.

"Arshdeep is not going to play in the entire series" - Kris Srikkanth

Kris Srikkanth believes left-arm pacer Arshdeep Singh will continue not to play in the remainder of the ongoing T20I series in Australia. Despite being India's all-time leading wicket-taker in T20Is with 101 scalps, the 26-year-old has warmed the bench in the first two outings.

"They'll keep picking Harshit Rana for his batting. Arshdeep is not going to play in the entire series. To play him, you've to drop Harshit Rana. Or else, you've to play Harshit Rana as your No. 7. Will they go for that option? It's hard to comprehend what they are doing," said Srikkanth (via the aforementioned source).

Unfortunately, the defending T20 world champions find themselves in a 0-1 hole after two games in the best-of-five affair.

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Edited by Venkatesh Ravichandran