Shubman Gill kicked out of race to replace Rohit Sharma as India captain

India's top-order batter Shubman Gill didn't have a great series with the bat in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. The 25-year-old failed to score big runs in the series which has now raised questions over his place in the Test team.

Gill's poor form has raised questions over his ability to take over the team's captaincy after Rohit Sharma. Former India cricketer Aakash Chopra has recently spoke about two players who can replace Rohit Sharma as India's next captain and Gill wasn't on his list.

Chopra named Yashasvi Jaiswal and Rishabh Pant as the two players who can become India's captain in the future due to their consistent performances over the last few years. He also revealed the reason why Gill wasn't considered for the role anymore.

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Shubman Gill ignored as India's next captain

While speaking on his YouTube channel, Aakash Chopra predicted one out of Yashasvi Jaiswal and Rishabh Pant to become India's captain after Rohit Sharma. He also mentioned Jasprit Bumrah's name but feels that his injury issues don't keep him in good stead for the role of captaincy.

"Yashasvi Jaiswal and Rishabh Pant - which of the two can become the captain? It's a beautiful question because, as per sources, Rohit (Sharma) has said that he will manage the team for a few months, but after that, you (the BCCI) can find whoever you want, and since there could be an injury issue with (Jasprit) Bumrah, it's your wish," Chopra said.

Chopra also has a short-term solution in which he wants Jasprit Bumrah to lead India in the Test series against England in June but wants the selectors to appoint a vice-captain in order to groom him for the future.

"I had a solution that we should see after six months. If Jasprit Bumrah captains the entire England tour, appoint a vice-captain properly because you have to groom him. Let's be very honest, when we won the T20 World Cup, it seemed like the grooming process was going very well," he noted.

Aakash Chopra on Shubman Gill's demotion from leadership group

While speaking further on his channel, Aakash Chopra revealed the reason behind Shubman Gill's demotion from the leadership group. Chopra also observed that the Indian team management tried to promote Gill by giving him chances in the leadership group but his performances degraded over time.

"Everything looked fine. Shubman Gill was being made the vice-captain. He was regularly being assigned that role and then suddenly Shubman Gill was dropped. So pressure was put on him as to what was happening as he is potentially not coming in the captaincy thoughts and is not coming in the T20 format at all," Chopra explained.

A few months earlier, things were looking good for Shubman Gill. He was seen as India's next captain after Rohit Sharma and was even appointed the vice-captain for the ODI series in Sri Lanka.

Gill also led the team in the T20I series against Zimbabwe when the regular captain Suryakumar Yadav was rested. However, the sudden dip in form in Tests has raised questions over his place in the red-ball team.

Shubman Gill in BGT 2024-25

In the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, Shubman Gill scored 93 runs in three Tests at an average of 18.60. He missed the first Test due to an injury before the series. However, he was back at his preferred No. 3 slot in the second match.

But he didn't look at his best and struggled against the moving ball against a quality Australian bowling attack. Gill was later dropped from the final Test in Sydney owing to the team combination as India opted for two spin-bowling allrounders.