Ravichandran Ashwin has expressed concern about how India and Shubman Gill would handle the vice-captain’s dip in form. Ashwin believes that Gill deserves the remaining two T20Is against South Africa, but if his form doesn’t improve, the team management will have to take the difficult call to drop him.
Gill has managed only 291 runs in 2025 at an average of 24.25, with a strike-rate of 137.26, failing to score a single half-century since returning to the first 11 as the opener in September. He’s under extreme pressure for his arrival and appointment as the vice-captain meant Sanju Samson’s demotion to the middle-order (and eventual dropping despite slightly better returns to Gill), and Axar Patel’s sacking from the leadership role.
In the third T20I against South Africa in Dharamshala on Monday, Gill started well but was bowled by Marco Jansen for 28 (28).
“I am a little concerned,” Ashwin said on his YouTube show Ash Ki Baat. “Shubman is not only the opener but also the vice-captain. How will you remove the vice-captain? It is going to be an incredibly tough decision. If you have to take that decision, inside this series you can’t bring Samson because it does not look nice to drop the vice-captain. You can ask whether vice-captains have been dropped in the past or not. But he has been taken and should be given a fair run. If he does not perform in the five games, then a decision will have to be made,” he added.
Ashwin said it’s not a good sign that India haven’t zeroed in on their best 11 yet with just two months to go for the 2026 T20 World Cup, but mentioned how the bigger problem would be if Gill starts to score runs but with a lower strike rate in an attempt to save his place in the team.
“You should know your best XI and best squad (for T20 WC) by now. I don’t think there are any doubts in the bowling. That department is sealed. Another good message is that Harshit Rana is showing what he is capable of. He is executing what he is good at. The only question is, if Shubman doesn’t make the runs, should he be there or should Samson be playing. The only unfortunate thing from here on I do not want to see is Gill making runs at a lesser strike rate. That should not happen,” he added.