Chopra’s T20 WC XI snubs Gill again
Former India opener Aakash Chopra unveiled an “alternate” India squad for the T20 World Cup 2026 on December 25, and Shubman Gill was missing again—a fresh twist after the BCCI also left the batter out of its official 15.
Chopra’s reserve list features Ruturaj Gaikwad and Yashasvi Jaiswal as openers, with Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant, KL Rahul and Mohammed Shami among the names included. Gill’s case remains thorny after a lean T20I run—291 runs in 15 innings at 24.25, with a strike rate above 137.
Chief selector Ajit Agarkar insisted it was tactical: “It’s more to do with the combination…” and “It’s not because he’s not a good player.” Ex-India batter Sanjay Manjrekar called the omission “damage control.”