The Indian cricket team has been unveiled for the ICC Champions Trophy 2025. Chief selector Ajit Agarkar and captain Rohit Sharma made the announcement at a press conference in Mumbai on Saturday (January 18).
The press conference was scheduled to take place at 12:30 PM IST, but was delayed by around 2.5 hours. This was because Rohit Sharma, Ajit Agarkar and Gautam Gambhir took part in the meeting which was very long and for which many were waiting for a long time.
However, the reason for the delay has been revealed. According to Dainik Jagran reports, it is learned that the main reason was the debate over the vice-captain of the team for the ICC Champions Trophy 2025. There was a discussion about who should be the deputy of Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill or Hardik Pandya.
Reports claimed that there is a clash of choices between Rohit, Ajit Agarkar and Gautam Gambhir. The captain and coach of the Indian national cricket team wanted Shubman Gill to be the vice-captain, while the head coach backed all-rounder Hardik Pandya to take up the role.
Ajit Agarkar and Rohit Sharma were adamant about making Shubman Gill the vice-captain for the 2025 ICC Champions Trophy.
Ajit Agarkar and Rohit were adamant about Shubman Gill, hence Gautam Gambhir’s call was not considered. This was confirmed to Dainik Jagran by a source close to the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).
Shubman Gill’s appointment as vice-captain came as no surprise as the youngster was appointed vice-captain during the Sri Lankan tour. After captaining the team in the T20I series against the Zimbabwe national cricket team, he became part of the leadership group.
Ajit Agarkar, talking about the decision to make Shubman Gill the vice-captain, said that they always look to the future. He also said feedback from the dressing room was taken into account before calling up the young vice-captain.
Shubman Gill has probably developed as one of the best openers in the team, working under Rohit Sharma will be handy for the youngsters
Shubman Gill has arguably developed into one of the team’s best openers. He scored 2328 One Day International (ODI) runs in 47 innings at an average of 58.20. He will be extremely important for his team in ICC Champions Trophy 2025 as he bats at the top.
Since he has become vice-captain, it can be said that BCCI is looking to the future. The young batsman is also the captain of Gujarat Titans in the league and working under Rohit Sharma will be extremely beneficial for him further in his career.
Also read: ICC Champions Trophy 2025: Ajit Agarkar gives an update on Jasprit Bumrah’s fitness
