Shubman Gill Fails On Ranji Trophy Return, Dismissed For Two-Ball Duck For Punjab

Indian Test captain Shubman Gill was dismissed for a two-ball duck during the 2025-26 Ranji Trophy clash between Punjab and Saurashtra on Thursday. The 26-year-old came to the crease with Punjab struggling at 73/3; however, his stay lasted just two deliveries as he was trapped LBW by Saurashtra's left-arm spinner, Parth Bhut. Earlier, Punjab had bowled Saurashtra out for 172 in their first innings. Gill has recently come under significant fire for his disappointing run of form and, following India's ODI series loss against New Zealand, his captaincy has also been heavily criticised.

Meanwhile, former Indian cricketer Manoj Tiwary believes that Shubman Gill should be sacked as the ODI captain and that the BCCI should reappoint Rohit Sharma. Gill replaced Rohit as the team's skipper in October 2025, but he has lost both the ODI series he has played so far as captain.

He made his captaincy debut in Australia, where India suffered a series loss. After missing the home series against South Africa, India once again suffered a series loss against New Zealand under his leadership.

Gill's captaincy came under heavy fire during the recently concluded ODI series against New Zealand, and during a recent interaction with InsideSport, Tiwary said the BCCI should 'course correct' and start preparing for the 2027 World Cup.

"Yes, absolutely. That's what I'm suggesting because there's still time to course correct. It's about the World Cup. It's not just about a bilateral series or a random tournament we are going to play," Tiwary said.

Tiwary added that if Rohit had been the captain during the series against New Zealand, things would likely have been different. India lost two matches in a row to suffer their first-ever home ODI series loss against New Zealand.

He went on to say that Rohit is a 'lot better' than Gill and he believes that India will have a better chance of winning the World Cup under Rohit's captaincy.