“It is a loss for Axar Patel” - Mohammad Kaif slams Ajit Agarkar-led selection committee after dropping Shubman Gill

Former Indian cricketer Mohammad Kaif has slammed the Indian selection committee, led by Ajit Agarkar, for backing Shubman Gill till the last minute and dropping him ahead of the ICC T20 World Cup 2026. However, he termed the decision to drop Gill as a right call.

Speaking on his YouTube channel, Kaif asserted that there were better players than Gill who could’ve received their chances in the playing XI, adding that it’s been a waste of time for Indian cricket ahead of the marquee event.

“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,” Mohammad Kaif said on his YouTube channel.

“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,” he added.

Furthermore, Kaif felt that Axar Patel would’ve been better equipped as a leader had he been Suryakumar Yadav’s deputy all this time instead of Gill. While Axar was appointed as SKY’s deputy during England’s tour of India, Gill was elevated to vice-captain role later at the start of the Asia Cup 2025.

“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,” he concluded.

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