India will be without the services of Shubman Gill for the Bengaluru Test as the star batter is not quite fit to make the playing XI on Thursday, October 17. Gill was replaced by Sarfaraz Khan in the team, with KL Rahul set to play at number three.
Since coming in at number three replacing Cheteshwar Pujara, the 25-year-old has performed well. Gill scored 782 runs in 12 matches batting at No. 3 at an average of 43.44. The 25-year-old has also scored 3 hundreds and 2 fifties during this period.
However, neck stiffness ruled Gill out for the first Test.
“Update: Shubman Gill was unavailable for selection in the first Test due to neck stiffness,” the BCCI statement read.
India had won the toss that day and made 2 changes in total, including the Sarfaraz-Gill swap. India opted to bring in Kuldeep Yadav for Akash Deep. With the 25-year-old out of the game, Rahul is expected to slot in at number three. However, the local star does not have a good track record in this position.
In the 4 matches he played as the No. 3 batter, Rahul scored just 88 runs at an average of 17.6. However, Rahul has a good record at Chinnaswamy Stadium and has scored 195 runs in 2 matches at Chinnaswamy Stadium so far in his career with a best of 90.
He hopes to use his experience as a hometown boy to put in a good performance.
IND vs NZ 1st Test, Day 2: Live Updates
India vs New Zealand: Playing the XIs
New Zealand (Jouer XI) : Tom Latham (c), Devon Conway, Will Young, Rachin Ravindra, Daryl Mitchell, Tom Blundell (w), Glenn Phillips, Matt Henry, Tim Southee, Ajaz Patel, William ORourke
Inde (Playing XI): Rohit Sharma (c), Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Virat Kohli, Sarfaraz Khan, Rishabh Pant (w), Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj.
Published on:
October 17, 2024
