India's in-form opening batter Shubman Gill is reportedly under the weather and might not feature in the Men in Blue's World Cup opener against five-time champions Australia slated to be played at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai on Sunday, October 8.
According to a PTI report, the 24-year-old batter will be tested for dengue on October 6 (Friday). Patients down with dengue take around a week to recover on time and the Indian cricket team and its fans will hope that the Fazilka-born tests negative for the disease and recovers as soon as possible to be a part of the country's 2023 World Cup campaign.
If Gill fails to recover on time ahead of the clash against the Aussies then India may choose to go in with Ishan Kishan as Rohit Sharma's opening partner at the top. Ishan Kishan is primarily an opening batter but has even batted in the middle order recently. If he gets to bat alongside Rohit, India will have a left and right-hand combination going which might unsettle the line and lengths of the Aussie bowlers a bit.
Shubman has been a prolific run-getter for India in ODI cricket in 2023 thus far. He has already aggregated 1230 runs at a stellar average of 72.35. The right-handed opener has hit five tons and five fifties thus far at a scintillating strike rate of 105.03. He scored a century against Australia in Indore which helped the team to claim the three-match ODI series. India won that game by 99 runs (DLS method).
India are likely to field three spinners (Kuldeep Yadav, Ravindra Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin) in their World Cup opening match as the wicket at Chepauk is historically known for assisting spin bowling. However, Australia also have a gun spin bowling option in their ranks in the form of Adam Zampa who can threaten the Indian batting order.
