“Indian cricket is a strange place” - Robin Uthappa opens up on Shubman Gill & Jitesh Sharma’s exclusion in T20 WC squad

Former India keeper-batter Robin Uthappa has opened up on Shubman Gill not finding a spot in the Indian squad for the T20 World Cup 2026 campaign, scheduled to start on Saturday, February 7, in India and Sri Lanka early next year.

Speaking on his YouTube channel, Uthappa termed the Indian cricket team a strange place after Gill and Jitesh Sharma’s exclusion from the squad. He went on to back both cricketers, adding that they would aim to come back stronger. 

"Indian cricket is a strange place. You would think there would be some semblance of predictability. It's a great side, a fantastic side, no doubt. But hearts are broken for sure. I empathise with them. You've got to feel bad for Shubman Gill. He's the captain of the Test and ODI side. Worst case scenario I thought somebody else maybe named the vice captain, but he'll find a spot in the side, maybe not in the 11, but he'll find a spot in the side as a third opener," Uthappa said on his YouTube channel.

"Jitesh did nothing wrong. He has done exceptionally well. Having said that, the justification for the selections seems legit. It's a solid side, but my heart goes out to Shubman Gill and Jitesh Sharma. Just take some time, guys. Deal with this and then come back strong. Your talent doesn't disappear, and how unique and special you are for Indian cricket does not diminish because of this non-selection. You guys will do superb things in cricket. Just go back to the drawing board and be authentically you is what I would say to Shubman and Jitesh," he added.

While Gill and Jitesh couldn’t find their spots in the squad, Ishan Kishan and Rinku Singh made it to the 15-man squad at the last minute. With Gill not making it to the final squad, Sanju Samson is expected to open the innings alongwith Abhishek Sharma.

India’s T20 World Cup 2026 Squad: Suryakumar Yadav (c), Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Sanju Samson (wk), Shivam Dube, Ishan Kishan (wk), Hardik Pandya, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Harshit Rana, Varun Chakaravarthy, Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Rinku Singh.

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