Star Indian opener Shubman Gill is likely to miss India’s pivotal encounter against arch-rivals Pakistan on Saturday after sitting out of India’s opening two World Cup 2023 matches against Australia and Afghanistan. The 24-year-old did not travel with the team to Delhi, where India will play Afghanistan on Wednesday.
The Right-handed opener has had a high fever and has been suffering from dengue since the Indian cricket team arrived in Chennai. In the match against Australia, Ishan Kishan replaced the opening batter by teaming up with the Indian skipper Rohit Sharma on Sunday.
According to the reports in Cricbuzz, Gill is currently under the care of Dr. Rizwan Khan, the BCCI doctor, who has been travelling with the team. The Indian opener is now receiving treatment at Kaveri Hospital in Chennai after being admitted due to a drop in his platelet count.
In the statement released by BCCI, It is said that Shubman Gill would not travel with the team to Delhi for the second match against Afghanistan and the youngster would remain under the supervision of the medical team.
“Team India batter Shubman Gill will not be travelling with the team to Delhi on 9th October 2023. The opening batter who missed the team’s first fixture in the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023 against Australia in Chennai is set to miss the team’s next fixture against Afghanistan in Delhi on the 11th of October. He will stay back in Chennai and will be under the supervision of the medical team,” A BCCI Press Release said.
The weakness associated with dengue takes time to go away from the body, even if the fever goes down and the platelet count increases. The batter might join the squad in Ahmedabad if conditions get better before the marquee clash against Pakistan on Saturday but is unlikely to take the field without having much practice.
The 24-year-old has been one of India’s best batsmen in recent months and has dominated in all three formats of the game. Gill is expected to play a vital as an opener for the ODI World Cup in 2023, and the team would expect him to recover for the game against the Babar Azam-led side in Narendra Modi Stadium.
Team India will find it difficult if Shubman Gill is unable to recover in time for the match against Pakistan, With 1230 runs at an average of 72.35 this year, he is not only India’s top batter, but he also loves to bat in Ahmedabad as his record speaks for himself in the game. The decision to play Ishan Kishan at the top of the order didn’t work out for the team as he went out for a first-ball duck.
