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ToggleShubman Gill, the young India opener, is expected to captain the Indian team on its upcoming tour of Zimbabwe. India will tour the African nation for five T20Is starting July 6 and all matches will be played in Harare.
The 24-year-old was named in the India squad as a reserve for the ongoing T20 World Cup 2024. However, Shubman Gill didn’t get a chance to break into the first XI and hence returned to India along with Avesh Khan after the USA leg of the tournament was over. The team management wanted to give them a break as they were unlikely to feature in any of the T20 World Cup games.
Shubman Gill to captain India
As for the Zimbabwe tour, the T20 World Cup team, including Virat Kohli and skipper Rohit Sharma, will take a holiday. The senior selection committee asked Hardik Pandya and Suryakumar Yadav whether they wanted to travel to Zimbabwe, but both declined.
Hence Shubman Gill will most likely captain the Indian team for the five T20Is against Zimbabwe as the BCCI selectors want to groom him for captaincy down the line.
Abhishek Sharma, Nitish Reddy, and Riyan Parag among possible inclusions in the India squad for the Zimbabwe tour
According to The Indian Express, the senior selection committee has already selected a tentative 20-member squad for the forthcoming series but is awaiting feedback from Hardik and Suryakumar. However, Shubman Gill will be named captain in their absence.
Sunrisers Hyderabad opener Abhishek Sharma and Assam’s Riyan Parag, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Tushar Deshpande, and Harshit Rana, all IPL regulars, will fly to Zimbabwe, as will Sanju Samson, Yashasvi Jaiswal, and Rinku Singh, who were on the bench during the T20 World Cup.
The selectors decided to try out another medium-pace allrounder and chose SRH’s Reddy. Reddy had received the BCCI Emerging Player of the Year award. Deshpande, a Mumbai pacer, had a successful domestic season and was a reliable bowler for the Chennai Super Kings. Harshit Rana of Delhi had a solid IPL final and kept his pace consistent throughout the season.
With the Indian board still to pick the next Indian team’s coach, the BCCI has opted to put VVS Laxman in charge of the Zimbabwe tour. Laxman is the director of cricket at the National Cricket Academy. The next Indian coach is expected to join the squad for their trip to Sri Lanka, which begins on July 27.
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