Why is Shubman Gill ruled out of India vs Afghanistan match of 2023 World Cup?
Young opener Shubman Gill will not be part of the Indian team that will take on Afghanistan in their second 2023 World Cup match at the Arun Jaitley Stadium on Wednesday.
Gill, who was in red-hot form heading into the World Cup, suffered from a bout of dengue a couple of days before India's tournament opener against Australia in Chennai. As a result, he missed the game that the Men in Blue won by six wickets.
According to a recent update by the BCCI, Gill will continue to remain out of action. He is currently under the supervision of BCCI's medical team and will not travel with the squad to Delhi for the next game.
"Team India batter Shubman Gill will not be travelling with the team to Delhi on 9th October 2023," BCCI said in a statement. "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," the statement added.
If reports are to be believed, Shubman Gill is likely to miss the blockbuster game against arch-rivals Pakistan in Ahmedabad on October 14. However, there is still no official word from the governing body.
Team India get their World Cup campaign running with a win over Australia
Rohit Sharma and company thrashed five-time champions Australia by six wickets in their World Cup opener at the MA Chidambaram Stadium on Sunday.
The Aussies batters looked clueless against the Indian spinners, managing only 199 runs. Ravindra Jadeja picked up three wickets, while Kuldeep Yadav and Ravichandran Ashwin chipped in with two and one wicket, respectively.
In response, the Australian new ball bowlers fired all cylinders to blow out the Indian top order. Reeling at 2/3, the hosts were staring at a humiliation when Virat Kohli and KL Rahul joined forces to bail the team out of danger. The pair added 165 runs for the fourth wicket to put the side on the brink of victory.
Although Kohli got out for 85 runs, Rahul remained unbeaten on 97 to hand India two valuable points.