'Shubman Gill will not be..' - India Cricket Board dishes out medical update on star India batter ahead of Afghanistan clash in ODI World Cup 2023

The Indian cricket board confirmed that the star India batter Shubman Gill is expected to be absent from India's second Cricket World Cup 2023 match against Afghanistan due to reported dengue fever. The 23-year-old had already missed India's opening match against Australia at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai due to a fever that had persisted for several days. In the Australia match, Ishan Kishan took Gill's place, forming a partnership with India captain Rohit Sharma.

In a release, the BCCI said: "Team India batter Shubman Gill will not be travelling with the team to Delhi on 9th October 2023. The opening batter who missed the team's first fixture in the Men's Cricket World Cup 2023 against Australia in Chennai is set to miss the team's next fixture against Afghanistan in Delhi on the 11th of October. He will stay back in Chennai and will be under the supervision of the medical team."

 Gill is not feeling well: Rohit Sharma

 In the pre-match conference ahead of the campaign opener for India against Australia, Rohit said that they have entered this tournament well-prepared, expressing confidence in their skills. He is also eagerly anticipating the upcoming game, with everyone in good health. Although Gill is not at 100 per cent due to illness, there are no injury concerns. The team is monitoring his condition daily, giving him every opportunity to recover and assessing how he feels. As of now, he has not been ruled out.

"The mood is pretty good as it is before the start of every big tournament. We've come into this tournament prepared well, so quite confident about us skill-wise. We're looking forward to the game. Everybody's fit. Gill is not 100 per cent, but he's sick. So, there's no injury concern. Gill is not feeling well. We are monitoring him daily. We're going to give him every chance to recover and see how he feels. So, he's not ruled out yet," Rohit had said in the pre-match press conference ahead of the Australia game.

In the absence of Gill, Ishan is expected to partner with Rohit in the opening against Afghanistan. The left-handed batsman failed to score in the match against Australia and will be eager to turn his fortunes around in the upcoming game. With Gill sidelined, Shreyas Iyer is likely to be included in the middle-order for India's second World Cup match. He, too, was dismissed for a duck in the match against Australia.