Shubman Gill to miss first Test against New Zealand; Sarfaraz Khan to replace: Reports

Just hours ahead of the first Test against New Zealand, the hosts, Team India have been dealt with a big blow as they are likely to miss the services of star batter, Shubman Gill. According to reports making rounds on social media, the 25-year-old is likely to sit out due to a stiff neck. However, neither the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCC) nor captain Rohit Sharma has communicated on the same so far.

According to reports, Gill spent most of his training time with the physio in the last few days. Although, an official communication is still awaited, reports reveal that the final decision will be taken on the match day itself. Notably, India will kick start their three-match Test series against New Zealand from Wednesday, October 16 with the first Test set to be played at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru.

Sarfaraz Khan likely to replace Gill in Playing XI

According to reports quoting India Today, a NCA member informed that if Gill continues to sit out in the first Test, Sarfaraz Khan is expected to make a comeback. Notably, Khan made his India debut in the whites earlier this year in the Test series against England. In the three Tests, the Mumbai batter scored 200 runs at an average of 50. He recently featured in the Irani Cup match and scored an unbeaten 222 in the first Mumbai innings.

Moreover, Gill has been an integral part of the Indian line-up. The young Indian batter recently featured in the two-match Test series against Bangladesh, where he scored an unbeaten 119 in the first Test. With Gill likely to sit out, apart from Sarfaraz Khan, KL Rahul or Dhruv Jurel could also be taken into consideration. 

India’s squad for the three Tests against New Zealand

Rohit Sharma (C), Jasprit Bumrah (VC), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul, Sarfaraz Khan, Rishabh Pant (WK), Dhruv Jurel (WK), Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohd. Siraj, Akash Deep

Travelling Reserves: Harshit Rana, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Mayank Yadav and Prasidh Krishna

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