Gill Named Vice-Captain, Bumrah Returns for Asia Cup T20 Squad

Mumbai, Aug 19: India’s Test skipper Shubman Gill was on Tuesday appointed as vice-captain of the 15-member T20 squad for the Asia Cup beginning September 9 in the UAE. Pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah also made a comeback, marking his first T20 tournament since the 2024 World Cup.

Gill, who last featured in a T20 against Sri Lanka in Pallekele in 2024, replaces Axar Patel as deputy to skipper Suryakumar Yadav. Chief selector Ajit Agarkar said Gill’s exceptional form in England exceeded expectations.

While there were concerns over Bumrah’s availability due to the upcoming Test series against the West Indies, selectors cleared him, strengthening India’s pace attack. Left-arm wrist spinner Kuldeep Yadav was also recalled, and Jitesh Sharma has been named as back-up wicketkeeper-batter.

Yashasvi Jaiswal, who narrowly missed out, was included among the five standby players. “It’s unfortunate Jaiswal has had to miss out but he will have to wait,” Agarkar said.

India is drawn in Group A alongside Pakistan, Oman, and UAE.

India’s Squad: Suryakumar Yadav (captain), Shubman Gill (vice-captain), Abhishek Sharma, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Jasprit Bumrah, Jitesh Sharma, Shivam Dube, Arshdeep Singh, Sanju Samson, Harshit Rana, Tilak Varma, Rinku Singh, Varun Chakravarthy, Kuldeep Yadav.