Explained: Why Shubman Gill and Rinku Singh were left out of Team India main squad for T20 World Cup 2024

Once referred to as the next big thing in Indian cricket, Shubman Gill failed to find a place in India's main squad for the T20 World Cup 2024, scheduled to begin on June 2 in the Caribbean and the USA.

Though he will travel with the squad as part of the reserves, what made the selectors lose trust in Gill?

While there's no doubt about his batting ability, Shubman Gill's numbers in T20 cricket are disappointing for a batter of his calibre.

He was the orange cap winner of IPL 2023 and smashed 890 runs in that edition but post that, Gill's T20 form saw a big dip.

Since then, the 24-year-old has played 8 T20Is and has only managed 133 runs at a below-par average of 16.6. That includes a 77 against the West Indies. If you take that out, Gill has just scored 56 runs in the rest of the 7 matches. What's more concerning is his strike rate which is just over 126 during these 8 T20Is.

His numbers in IPL 2024 also reveal a sad story of a batter who might be succumbing to the pressure of captaining the Gujarat Titans.

Despite 2 half-centuries which included an unbeaten 89, Gill has managed to score 320 runs at an average of over 35. His strike rate of 141 is also concerning for someone who bats in the powerplay.

Given how Team India suffered because of poor strike rates in a couple of previous editions of the T20 World Cup, Gill might have lost his place due to that.

However, a shocking omission from the main squad was Rinku Singh, given that the youngster had been a part of India's T20I team for a year.

His numbers in the shortest format of the game though can't be overlooked and it's strange why the selectors put him on the reserve list.

Rinku has smashed 356 runs at a whopping average of 89 in 11 T20I innings he has played for India. His strike rate of over 176 also speaks for itself.

Interestingly, the 26-year-old has 7 not-outs against his name during these 11 innings. Rinku even smashed a match-saving 69 not out in the last T20I he played against Afghanistan.

What might have prompted the selectors to not include him in the main squad is his IPL numbers this season. Rinku has scored just 123 runs in 8 IPL innings this year at an average of 20.5.

But to be fair, Rinku has mostly come out to bat in the death overs, with no time to get to personal milestones. His strike rate of 150 during these knocks proves his ability.

He might be one of the best in the business but it seems that slot issues and team combination might have robbed him of a place in India's T20 World Cup squad.