ICC World Cup 2023: Shubman Gill 'Under the Weather', BCCI Medical Team Monitoring him Closely

Shubman Gill was a notable absentee from India’s training session in Chennai on Thursday and the news coming in from the camp is that he is “under the weather”. Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) spokesperson added that the medical team is closely monitoring star opener’s progress.

“He’s under the weather, the medical team is closely monitoring him. We are hoping he gets better soon,” says the BCCI spokesperson.

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There is no clarity yet on status of Gill and his participation in India’s 2023 World Cup match vs Australia on Sunday. The spokesperson added that more updates from the medical team will help get clarity.

“We will have to wait on more updates from the medical team,” adds the spokesperson.

The 24-year-old Gill has hardly missed a practice session – optional or compulsory – in the past and his absence on Thursday did raise a few eyebrows. The word from the team camp remained that it’s an “optional session” but everyone except Gill was in attendance.

Ishan Kishan to open?

Gill has been on song for India at top of the order in ODIs and his absence could well affect India’s plans for the opening clash of the multi-nation event. The classy right-hander has already amassed 1230 runs in ODIs this year and looked very good in the recent outings during the Asia Cup and the ODI series vs Australia.

If he fails to recover in time, India could well ask Ishan Kishan or KL Rahul to open the batting with Rohit Sharma. While KL is likely to hold on to his middle-order spot, a number where he has been very consistent for India, Kishan could be the preferred choice.

There weren’t many takeaways in this regard from India’s net session as Kishan didn’t have a long session under the sun but was one of the first few batters to take a hit. More clarity on Gill and India’s opener for the tournament opener is likely today when the team assembles for another training session.

A member of the squad or support staff is likely to address the media and provide much needed update on Gill and team’s plans for the big clash on Sunday.