India’s rising batter Shubman Gill missed the first 2 matches of ODI WC 2023 due to dengue. In place of Shubman Gill, the dashing left-handed batter Ishan Kishan replaced him against Australia and Afghanistan. Ishan Kishan did a decent job against Afghanistan as he scored 40-odd runs.
Ishan Kishan was seen playing the role of anchor as the skipper Rohit Sharma was in beast mode and smashed a barnstorming ton against Afghanistan. The rise of Rohit Sharma means now that there is no added pressure on Ishan Kishan and can play his natural attacking game.
Shubman Gill might not be available for the Pakistan match- Aakash Chopra
Aakash Chopra was seen speaking on his You Tube channel. Aakash Chopra stated that playing Shubman Gill at Ahmedabad would be quite risky as he is getting close to becoming fit. Aakash Chopra pointed out that recovering from dengue takes time.
“Shubman Gill is traveling to Ahmedabad, even though you and I don’t know the platelet count. Since he is going, we are hoping that he is getting close to becoming fit. I am hoping, but I don’t think he will play the Pakistan match. I feel he will still take rest because dengue is a bit of an issue,” said Aakash Chopra.
“It takes time to recover and come back. So he might not be available for this match. The good news is that he is no longer in hospital and is travelling as well. So things are looking a little better. If he had played in Ahmedabad, it would have been enjoyable because Gill likes Ahmedabad a lot,” he added.
Steep challenge awaits India
India may have an upper hand going against Pakistan given their recent success against Pakistan in Asia Cup 2023 but ODI WC 2023 would be a complete different ball game. India will have to be careful against the left arm pacer Shaheen Afridi who can be lethal on the given day.
We witnessed how Pakistan chased down the record 345 runs against Sri Lanka in the 8th match of ODI WC 2023. The side made a statement that they are no longer dependent on their skipper Babar Azam as the wicket-keeper batter Mohammad Rizwan played a sensational knock of 131 runs in 121 balls and struck 8 fours and 3 sixes.