Watch: Gautam Gambhir ignores media at airport, keeps silence on Shubman Gill's T20 World Cup 2026 exclusion
India head coach Gautam Gambhir avoided media interaction at the airport, choosing not to comment on Shubman Gill’s exclusion from the T20 World Cup squad. His silence has fuelled speculation amid ongoing debate over the selection call.
The reactions are pouring in rapidly regarding the shocking news from Ajit Agarkar - Shubman Gill's omission from the T20 World Cup squad. The 15-member team was revealed on Saturday afternoon, catching everyone off guard as the 26-year-old was not included. While it’s true that runs had been scarce, Gill had recently become a standout player, taking on the roles of Test and ODI captain, and later the vice-captain for T20Is. Nevertheless, Agarkar, the chief selector, made a tough call by excluding Gill from the lineup.
Just hours after the squad announcement in Mumbai, India’s head coach Gautam Gambhir was seen arriving at the Delhi airport on Saturday evening. It was no surprise that he was swarmed by the media, who had numerous questions about India’s T20 World Cup team.
However, the former Indian opener bypassed the media, completely disregarding their inquiries. He chose not to respond to any questions as reporters persistently sought his thoughts on the team, particularly regarding Gill's exclusion. Gambhir opted not to engage, swiftly heading to his car before departing the airport.
#WATCH | Indian Men's Cricket Team Head Coach Gautam Gambhir arrives in Delhi
— ANI (@ANI) December 20, 2025
BCCI today announced India’s squad for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026. pic.twitter.com/RbqVtaixyR
Returning to Gill, he had re-entered India’s T20I plans during the Asia Cup earlier this year as the vice-captain, which resulted in Sanju Samson being pushed down the batting order. A few matches later, Samson was ultimately dropped from the playing XI, with Jitesh Sharma being favored instead.
Since his return to India’s T20I squad, Gill has played 15 matches, accumulating 291 runs. However, he has yet to score a single fifty, with his highest score being 47 against Pakistan in the Asia Cup.
Throughout Gill's time in the T20I playing XI, questions arose as he struggled to accelerate the scoring alongside Abhishek, with a strike rate of 137.26.
Gill suffered a toe injury before the Lucknow T20I against South Africa, which caused him to miss the final match in Ahmedabad, where Samson stepped in and scored 37 runs off 22 balls.
India squad for T20 World Cup 2026: Suryakumar Yadav (captain), Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel (Vice Captain), Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, Varun Chakravarthy, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Sanju Samson (wk), Washington Sundar, Ishan Kishan, Rinku Singh