The 26-year-old Shubman Gill is currently leading the Indian side in the ODI and Test formats. But the right-handed batter hasn’t been picked for the T20I set-up for the upcoming tours of Ireland and England. The batter, despite his success in the Indian Premier League, hasn’t played the T20I format for India since December 2025.

Ex-Indian skipper Mohammad Azharuddin questioned the Indian selectors for ignoring the Gujarat Titans skipper from the shortest format. In his chat with PTI, the 63-year-old said, “Shubman has been leading the side very well. His performances individually have also been great. He is a very fine player; still, I don’t understand why he wasn’t picked for the T20I format as he is an all-format player.”

Azharuddin also questioned the selectors over the absence of Sarfaraz Khan and Auqib Nabi Dar from the Test format. “Both (Sarfaraz and Auqib) have done well in domestic cricket. There is emphasis being put on cricketers playing the first-class matches, but what’s the use of doing that if performances aren’t going to be recognized? Will they be picked when the cricketers are past their prime?

Auqib Nabi was a key player for Jammu and Kashmir this year as they won their maiden Ranji Title. The 29-year-old picked 60 wickets and was thought to be on the fringes of a call-up to the national side. Sarfaraz, on the other hand, hasn’t played for India since the 2024 series against New Zealand.

Azharuddin backs Shreyas Iyer to do well as captain

Shreyas Iyer was named as India’s latest T20I skipper after his impressive leadership skills in the IPL. Speaking about this move, Azhar said, “Iyer has been performing well, and the chance to lead the side is well-deserved. He has a good cricketing brain and with time will become a good skipper.”

When asked about Suryakumar Yadav being axed as the skipper and also losing his spot in the side, the former batter said, “One has to show consistency because these things matter a lot. Many young players are coming through the ranks, and one cannot rest on past glories.”