During the preparations for the Perth Test, Gill was hit on his finger while engaging in fielding drills.
Shubman Gill might feature in India’s practice match against the Prime Minister’s (PM) XI in Canberra. The 25-year-old had sustained a finger injury on November 16 while preparing for the 1st India vs Australia Test. Initially, it was reported that Gill could miss the first two Tests.
However, Morne Morkel, Team India’s assistant coach, cleared the air on the matter. He hinted towards Gill’s possible return in the first match of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 itself if his finger was healed. In the end, Gill couldn’t feature in Perth, but India didn’t feel his absence as they beat the hosts by a huge margin of 295 runs.
Injury-free Shubman Gill back in the nets
Gill was given 10-14 days as his recovery time, and it seems he’s back at his best. He hit in the today at the Manuka Oval, the venue for the India vs PM’s XI match. It was expected that he wouldn’t be able to make it to the day and night practice game, but Shubman Gill’s ready.
If he features in the 2-day match (November 31-December 1), it’ll also confirm his availability for the India vs Australia 2nd Test, which will be played almost a week after the India vs PM’s XI match in Adelaide. In his absence, Devdutt Padikkal had claimed over the number three position.
KL Rahul should replace Shubman Gill at 3?
While most expect Gill to return to the spot, some have floated the idea that Gill should bat lower down the order. Given the form KL Rahul is in, many want him to remain in the top three. Since Rohit Sharma’s returning, he’ll partner Yashasvi Jaiswal up top. To ensure Rahul, who was India’s best player in Perth, can tackle the Aussie quicks, he must be slotted in at 3, even if both Gill and Virat Kohli move down one spot.
India’s squad for Australia Tests
Rohit Sharma, Jasprit Bumrah (vc), Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Devdutt Padikkal, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant (wk), Sarfaraz Khan, Dhruv Jurel (wk), Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Mohammed Siraj, Akash Deep, Prasidh Krishna, Harshit Rana, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar
Reserves: Mukesh Kumar, Navdeep Saini, Yash Dayal
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Shubman Gill returns to nets amid injury concerns, India vs PM’s XI match participation uncertain
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