Shubman Gill is being groomed to take over as India’s all-format captain, and that’s a fact. But then, what could be the succession plan? How long could Suryakumar Yadav lead the T20 team and what will be the thinking going ahead?
Surya will captain the Indian team in the 2026 T20 World Cup, unless there are exceptionally bad results in the Asia Cup, and the three bilateral series that follow. If things go to plan, and they should, Surya will indeed lead the team on home soil in February-March. And Gill will be his deputy. Thereafter, however, comes the twist. To many, Gill is expected to take over after the World Cup is over. Maybe not. Soon after the T20 World Cup is over, the focus will shift to the Test format and the 50-over ODIs. Gill is already captain in red-ball cricket and is expected to lead in the 2027 home World Cup as well, unless Rohit Sharma is able to turn the clock back dramatically.
In such a scenario, with red-ball and 50-over cricket being the focus, Gill isn’t expected to play much T20 cricket between May 2026 and mid-2027. His priority will be Test matches and ODIs, and there is every chance that he will skip T20s, much like he has done in the last 12 months. From the workload management standpoint too, this makes sense. There is enough and more cricket lined up for Gill to be busy, and it will be near impossible to play all games across all formats.
