Having suffered an embarrassing loss to South Africa in the opening Test at Kolkata, Team India will look to level the two-match Test series in Guwahati, which gets underway from November 22nd at Barsapara Stadium. While the venue is all set to host an international Test match for the first time ever, skipper Shubman Gill will not be fit for the do-or-die match.
Gill was taken to the hospital at the end of Day 2 in Kolkata last Saturday after sustaining a neck injury, having faced just three balls in India’s first innings. On the following morning, the BCCI confirmed that he would take no further part in the match.
According to a latest report in PTI, Gill has been advised to take rest for the next few days and will not be travelling to Guwahati for the second game. A CAB source, while speaking to the news agency, said, "He has acute neck pain, and we're not allowed to go further into details about the injury. He has to continue wearing the neck collar,".
The source added, "He has been advised to take three to four days of rest and not to take a flight. We are monitoring his progress daily, and the picture will be clearer by Tuesday." If Gill is ruled out of the match, the big question is who will replace the opening batter in the playing XI
Team India's options for Gill's replacement
If Gill is unavailable for the match, India only has two other batters to choose from the 15-member squad for the Guwahati game. The players in contention are B Sai Sudharsan and Devdutt Padikkal.
Sudharsan was backed as India's long-term No. 3 in Test cricket, but has been dropped twice since his debut earlier in the tour of England. While more recently, he scored 87 in the Delhi Test match against the West Indies last month, prompting criticism over his omission in Kolkata.
Padikkal, on the other hand, who last played a Test match for India in the Dharamsala match against England in March 2024 looks in decent touch having scored 96 for Karnataka against Saurashtra in Rajkot in the Ranji Trophy last month, followed by a knock of 150 for India A against Australia A in September in Lucknow.
Drafting a new player to partner Jaiswal at top
The other solution could be drafting a replacement for Gill if Gambhir decides against adding another left-hander in the playing XI. Abhimanyu Easwaran should be the preferred choice, given that he has been part of the Test squad for a long time. Calls for Sarfaraz Khan's inclusion have been doing the rounds, but he has struggled to pile runs in the ongoing Ranji Trophy.
Ruturaj Gaikwad could be a favourable option giving coach Gambhir to continue with left-hand-right-hand combination at the top. Karun Nair, too, is an option after being dropped from the Indian Test team following a poor outing during the England tour. However, the big question is whether the management would want to go back to him?
