'Fire and Ice" replaced by 'Fire and Fire': Harsha Bhogle on Gill's omission from India's T20 World Cup squad
"Really like the team that has been picked. Big call on leaving out Gill and that tells me that 'Fire & Ice' has been replaced by 'Fire & Fire'. The options Ishan Kishan gives are too tempting to ignore, especially given his form. Sadly, that means Jitesh had to go and you feel for him, but Rinku is an excellent player. It makes this team left-heavy but that is a by-product of an otherwise brave call. Lots more explained in the vlog I have just recorded and which will be up later today," Bhogle said on X.
ANI
Dec 20, 2025 18:57 IST
New Delhi [India], December 20 (ANI): The Indian cricket fraternity shared their views on India's T20I World Cup squad, which threw up several surprises with the return of Rinku Singh and Ishan Kishan, while Jitesh Sharma missed out and Shubman Gill was dropped.
Former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan felt the selection brought both relief and concerns. He said on his official X handle, "Missed out last time, redemption this time for Rinku Singh. Ishan Kishan gets in. A few concerns heading into the World Cup, but congratulations to the squad selected for Team India."
https://x.com/IrfanPathan/status/2002301298650366199?s=20
Ishan, who had a marvellous Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT) 2025-26 campaign with Jharkhand, leading them to their first-ever SMAT title, has returned to the side after last playing a T20I against Australia in late 2023.
He top-scored in SMAT with 517 runs in 10 innings at 57.44, including two centuries and two fifties, including a century in the final against Haryana, and striking at over 197.
However, he also questioned the exclusion of Jitesh Sharma and highlighted the importance of form for Suryakumar Yadav in his second tweet, "Jitesh Sharma will think what did I do so wrong to be missing out? Suryakumar Yadav needs to be in form getting into the World Cup. Hoping for him to score runs against New Zealand to feel good about his game."
https://x.com/IrfanPathan/status/2002302110101070083?s=20
Former India seamer Venkatesh Prasad backed the squad and was pleased with some familiar faces returning to key roles. He shared his views on X, "Looks a very good team. Happy to see Ishan Kishan back and Axar Patel, who played such a crucial role in the 2024 World Cup triumph, becoming the vice-captain again. Best wishes Team India for the T20 World Cup."
https://x.com/venkateshprasad/status/2002300482904338581?s=20
Ex-India opener Aakash Chopra was taken aback by the scale of changes so close to a major tournament.
"Whoaaa... that's a lot of changes so close to the World Cup. Jitesh wouldn't know what he did wrong. Rinku is back to where he belongs. Why was he left out in the cold? Happy for Ishan -- both keepers are like for like in the batting slot. Axar back as VC. The experiment with Gill put to bed," Chopra said on X.
https://x.com/cricketaakash/status/2002300602320290244?s=20
Renowned commentator Harsha Bhogle praised the selectors for making what he termed bold calls, particularly the decision to leave out Gill.
https://x.com/bhogleharsha/status/2002308338156228959?s=20
The team was announced by BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia at the board's headquarters on Saturday, in the presence of captain Suryakumar Yadav and chief selector Ajit Agarkar.
India's squad for T20 World Cup 2026 and New Zealand T20I series: Suryakumar Yadav (captain), Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson (wicketkeeper), Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel (vice-captain), Rinku Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, Varun Chakaravarthy, Washington Sundar, Ishan Kishan (wicketkeeper). (ANI)
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