Brand Shubman: Why Gill's form slump has not shaken advertiser confidence

A superstar cricketer getting dropped from the India team has been pretty rare -almost a Black Swan event

Three to four years ago, we approached Shubman Gill for an endorsement deal. His contract, even back then, had a clause that specifically stated that if he were to be named India captain, his fees would go up significantly during the agreed contract period. Having seen, and signed, tens of celebrity contracts over the years, the clause seemed kind of surprising and unusual. One was not sure if it signalled genuine self-belief and self-confidence, or whether Gill (and his handlers) had got a bit too influenced and carried away by all the media hype surrounding him as the next big thing after Virat Kohli.

 

But Brand Shubman Gill recently took a severe hit when he got dropped from India’s T20 World Cup squad due to a significant slump in form in T20 Internationals, scoring only 291 runs in 15 innings in 2025 without a 50 (averaging 24.25, strike rate 137.26, highest score 47). The selectors prioritised explosive openers and wicketkeeper-batsmen like Sanju Samson and Ishan Kishan, viewing Gill as an anchor struggling for runs in a format demanding higher strike rates, despite his proven quality in Tests and ODIs.

 

Many in the brand world saw that as a black swan event — a superstar cricketer getting dropped from the India team has been pretty rare. Calls to at least three of Gill’s current endorsement clients evinced one common response — “total surprise” — with dollops of disbelief. Does that put his continuity as brand ambassador at risk, we asked. No, not really they all said in near unison. “It is a passing phase”. “He will bounce back”. “He is a run machine; poor form is just temporary”. “He is only 26”. “He is still captain in other formats”.

 

The vote of confidence in Gill was inspiring and reassuring. But we still asked the Indian Institute of Human Brands (IIHB) to run a small panel with other advertisers that have hired celebrities, and ask: What would you do if your celebrity falls off the cliff? The responses were pretty revealing:

 

“We have Akshay Kumar. He’s had a string of flops — Mission Raniganj, Bade Miyan Chote Miyan, Sarfira, Khel Khel Mein, Selfiee … though OMG 2 and Sky Force were good. But all that still doesn’t impact his fan following. We will continue with him. With celebs you win some, you lose some. You have to factor all that in when signing up”.

 

“We signed Ranveer in 2020. 83 was a lukewarm success. Then his Cirkus was a flop in 2022. Jayeshbhai Jordaar was a disaster the same year. But then Rocky and Rani did well in 2023. In 2024, he had no release. And then finally Dhurandhar has been thunderous and rewarded our patience in sticking by him”. 

 

“Deepika has been in pregnancy and motherhood mode now for more than two years. She will only be back with Kalki 2898 AD. But despite much pushback internally from some of our board members, we have persisted with her”.

 

“We have stuck to Virat despite his being headed into the sunset — he has been getting very selective too with brands ever since Ravi Shastri started handling him. Don’t know how long he will remain relevant with fans with so much young blood around but for now he is still King Kohli”.

 

It was heartening to see such loyalty and continued support to the celebrity clan. Endorsement fees for none of these celebs have softened despite dips in performance or prolonged public hiatus. Obviously, intrinsic strength of these celebrity brands has created resilience and longevity. The same seems the case with Shubman Gill — his personal brand has become deep-rooted and firmly entrenched.

 

In the olden days, verdicts were much harsher. Indian cricket captain Ajit Wadekar was dropped and retired from all cricket following India’s disastrous 3-0 Test series whitewash in England in 1974, highlighted by the infamous 42 all out at Lord’s, a massive shock after his earlier triumphs in England and the West Indies. After a controversial phase with coach Greg Chappell, Sourav Ganguly was dropped from ODIs and Tests in 2005-2006, though he made strong comebacks later. In any case, brand endorsements were not such a big issue back then.

 

Gill may be unscathed as of now, and advertisers may be claiming that they are impervious to star performance but one can be mighty sure that going forward more and more contracts will have some empirical metrics built-in on career trajectory. Both ups and downs. There is not much choice — both for corporate governance and compliance.

 

For now, Brand Shubman Gill is bruised, not ruptured. May the bruise heal quickly too.

 

The author is chairman of Rediffusion