In what could be a huge boost to Team India ahead of their ICC Men's Cricket World Cup 2023 clash against Pakistan, their star opener Shubman Gill is likely to feature in the match against the arch-rivals. While the Indian youngster was ruled out of each of the Men in Blue's two matches in the tournament so far as he tested positive for dengue, the 24-year-old could be part of India's playing 11 against Pakistan, as confirmed by Rohit Sharma at the pre-match press-conference. While he did not specifically mention whether Gill will be part of the Playing 11, he said that the 24-year-old was 99 per cent available for selection for the match, with a final call on his selection set to be taken on match day.
Gill's selection though would mean India would be forced to make a place for him in the side, implying either of Ishan Kishan or Shreyas Iyer, having to sit out. Whoever between the two of Kishan and Iyer gets the nod, however, will have to slot in the middle order with Gill set to open the innings along with Rohit Sharma.
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The Gujarat Titans (GT) has been the highest run-scorer in ODIs globally for the current year, amassing 1230 runs at an impressive average of 72.35 and a strike rate of 105.03. Over his most recent four ODIs, he's notched up two centuries and a half-century. In addition, he has a great record at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad which will be the venue for this IND vs PAK fixture.
IND vs PAK Probable Playing XIs:
IND Probable XI: Rohit Sharma (captain), Ishan Kishan/Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer/Ishan Kishan, KL Rahul (wicketkeeper), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj
PAK Probable XI: Abdullah Shafique, Imam-ul-Haq, Babar Azam (captain), Mohammad Rizwan (wicketkeeper), Saud Shakeel, Iftikhar Ahmed, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Hasan Ali, Shaheen Afridi, Haris Rauf