Shubman Gill Tests Dengue Positive, Likely To Miss World Cup Opener

Star batter Shubman Gill is likely to miss out on India’s International Cricket Council (ICC) World Cup 2023 campaign opener against Australia in Chennai on Sunday after reports emerged that the in-form opener tested positive for dengue.

Gill missed the team’s net session at the MA Chidambaram Stadium on Thursday and is undergoing treatment. The team management is monitoring his progress and a call on his availability will be taken another round of testing on Friday.

If Shubman Gill is not fit to start the game against Australia, a call will be made over either of Ishan Kishan or KL Rahul to pair captain Rohit Sharma as the opener. His absence will prove to be a setback for the team considering his sublime form in the calendar year.

Shubman Gill scored a fantastic double ton against New Zealand earlier this year. He has shown incredible consistency over the year, barring a minor blip in the West Indies tour, and top-scored in the Asia Cup with 302 runs. He also emerged the highest run-getter in the Indian Premier League with 890 runs. His last few innings yielded two tons with scores of 104, 74, 27*, 121, 19, 58 and 67*.

The Indian team had an air of uncertainty with several top performers making their comebacks from injury layoffs, leading up to the World Cup. Jasprit Bumrah, KL Rahul and Shreyas Iyer retured to the team following prolonged spells out on the sidelines. Spinner Axar Patel picked up an injury in the Asia Cup, forcing team management to call up Ravichandra Ashwin to the World Cup squad.

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