India batting coach Vikram Rathour said Shubman Gill is recovering well from the illness which kept him out of the side’s tournament opener against Australia, while adding that the right-handed opener was back in the hotel in Chennai after being hospitalized as a precautionary measure.
On Monday, the BCCI, without specifying the nature of the illness, said in a statement that Gill will miss India's second match of the 2023 ICC World Cup against Afghanistan at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi on Wednesday, 11 October, due to the illness and has stayed back in Chennai, with him under the supervision of the medical team.
“He’s recovering well. Yes, he was hospitalized, but it was more though as a precaution. He’s back in the hotel in Chennai and is recovering well. So, he’s being monitored by the medical team. We are hoping that he will recover soon and would be looking good,” said Rathour in the pre-match press conference.
Gill has been a vital cog in the wheel in India’s ODI scheme of things for over a year and a half. He is the current leading run-getter in the format this year, amassing 1230 runs at an average of 72.35 and a strike rate of 105.03, including hitting two centuries and as many fifties in his last four ODI games.
In Gill's absence, left-handed wicketkeeper-batter Ishan Kishan opened the innings with captain Rohit Sharma in Chennai. But India were reduced to 2-3 in a chase of 200 as Kishan, Rohit and Shreyas Iyer were dismissed for ducks – the first time this happened with India in ODIs.
But KL Rahul (97 not out) and Virat Kohli (85) staged India’s fabulous recovery under tremendous pressure to chase down the target with six wickets in hand and 52 balls to spare and get the hosts’ campaign off to a great start.
India will be aiming to build-up on the good start to the campaign when they face Afghanistan on Wednesday in New Delhi.
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