Former India batter Mohammed Kaif minced no words as he lambasted the Ajit Agarkar-led national selection committee for botching up their preparatory laps for the 2026 T20 World Cup and taking a last-minute decision to drop Shubman Gill and reinstate Axar Patel as the vice-captain of the side.
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Last Saturday, Gill was stunningly axed from the 15-member T20 World Cup, provisionally selected for the tournament, announced at the BCCI headquarters in Mumbai. Gill had featured in every T20I had played since the Asia Cup in September but failed to produce any knock of note, with a best of 47. In the recent five-match series against South Africa, Gill produced scores of 4, 0 and a run-a-ball 28 before picking up a toe injury that ruled him out of the last two games. In his absence, wicket-keeper Sanju Samson returned to the opening spot alongside Abhishek Sharma for the first time since January 2025 and made an instant impression with his quick-fire 37.
Samson, who smashed a world record three centuries last year, was unveiled as the first choice opener and keeper in the squad that was unveiled a day later. Kaif blasted the selectors for their timid planning and wasting crucial preparatory matches over the last three months where they experimented with a completely different set-up, involving Gill as vice-captain.
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“They knew there were better players, I am talking about the T20 format. Just this one. There were better players than Gill. So it was the mistake of the selectors. They have made a mistake and Indian cricket has gone behind. For two to three months, you could have invested in Jaiswal, Samson, and Jitesh,” Kaif said on his YouTube channel.
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Kaif said the return of Axar as vice-captain for the first time since January also meant the spin-bowling all-rounder lost crucial months to sharpen his leadership skills under captain Suryakumar Yadav.
“It is a loss for Axar Patel who returns as vice-captain and for the Indian team as well. The squad is still solid and there is no doubt. But if Axar had continued as vice-captain, he would have been a part of this team meeting, and he would have gotten time to work on his leadership. Let’s assume Surya gets injured, then if Axar had had those two to three months as vice-captain, he would know more about his team and the players. If he has to captain, he would have been better prepared, so that opportunity was taken away from him,” remarked Kaif.
Kaif said the late Gill snub was a result of the poor planning from Agarkar & Co., a gaffe that he believed was rare in Indian cricket.
“You carried Gill till the very end and then dropped him. I feel it is the right call. It came late, but it was right. The planning is zero. There is no planning. It has been a waste of time in the name of planning. You backed that player who is not ready now. There were better players than him who should have played. It was your mistake as selectors. Now you had no other choice but to remove him. This has happened very rarely. There was no option left as he did not score in 17-18 innings, and how many more chances would you give him? The pressure was increasing. No one wanted to drop him, but I feel it has been a waste of time for Indian cricket and those players who should have gotten the opportunity.”
