India suffered a shock T20I series defeat to Ireland in Belfast on Sunday, where the star-studded batting line-up under new captain Shreyas Iyer failed to fire in both matches. The back-to-back defeats intensified criticism of India’s top order, especially after Abhishek Sharma and Sanju Samson were dismissed for golden ducks in the second T20I. It also reignited the debate over whether teenage sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi should have been given an opportunity after his stellar IPL 2026 campaign.
After dominating on batting-friendly IPL pitches, India’s batters struggled to adapt to the seam-friendly conditions in Ireland. They were bowled out for 148 while chasing 183 in the series opener and could only manage 153/9 in the second match, eventually losing a last-ball thriller to surrender the series 0-2.
Amid the batting collapse, former India cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar made a bold prediction, saying he expects Shubman Gill to gradually return to India’s T20 setup. He cited Gill’s impressive IPL performances and proven record in English conditions as reasons why the opener still has an important role to play in the format.
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“Shubman Gill… just for people to understand, this is a guy who is a T20 batter now and had a tremendous IPL as well. I’m not talking about captaincy, but these are the players you slowly want to introduce back into T20 cricket because they have a little more depth in conditions like these and are used to them as well, like we saw when he played in England and overseas,” Manjrekar said on Sony Sports during the second T20I.
“That is the path for Shubman Gill going forward. It won’t happen immediately, but I think you will slowly start seeing him back in India’s T20 plans.”
Gill in T20Is
Gill returned to India’s T20I setup last September following an impressive tour of England, where he showcased his adaptability in overseas conditions. The BCCI even named him vice-captain in the format, with reports suggesting he was being groomed as India’s next T20 skipper after the 2026 World Cup. However, a prolonged lean patch forced the selectors to shelve those plans ahead of the ICC tournament.
Overall, he has played 36 T20I matches for India, scoring 869 runs at a strike rate of 138.59, including 1 century and 3 fifties.
Despite missing out on the Ireland tour, Gill made a strong case for his comeback with a prolific IPL 2026 campaign, scoring 732 runs for the Gujarat Titans. Manjrekar believes that form, coupled with his experience in dealing with difficult batting conditions, could eventually pave the way for his return to India’s T20 squad.
