Former England World Cup-winning captain Eoin Morgan said he would have picked Shubman Gill over Yashasvi Jaiswal in India’s T20 World Cup squad. While Jaiswal has been named in India’s 15-man squad, Gill finds his name in the list of reserve players.

Morgan has observed Gill from close quarters while leading Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL. The former left-hander said he knows how Gill thinks as he has spent time with him.

Eoin Morgan said on Sky Sports, “The only decision I would have had differently and if I was selecting the squad, I would have Shubman Gill over Yashasvi Jaiswal. I have played alongside him, I know how he thinks. I know how he works.

“I feel he’s a future leader within that side and I think in big moments, in World Cups, the more leaders the better. Even if he’s sitting on the sideline, you still need inspiration from here and there, a sense of positivity.”

Morgan also picked India as favorites for the upcoming T20I showpiece, given the team’s depth.

Meanwhile, Yashasvi Jaiswal scored 435 runs in 14 innings in IPL 2024 at an average of 31.07 and a strike rate of 155.91. On the other hand, Gill amassed 426 runs in 12 matches at an average of 38.73 and a strike rate of 147.40.

Jaiswal was in solid form in the five-match Test series against England, scoring 712 runs but could not replicate the same show in the IPL. 

India will begin their T20 World Cup campaign against Ireland on June 5th.

Squad: Rohit Sharma (Captain), Hardik Pandya (Vice Captain), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant (WK), Sanju Samson (WK), Shivam Dube, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohd. Siraj.

Reserves – Shubman Gill, Rinku Singh, Khaleel Ahmed and Avesh Khan