'Shubman Gill is 99 per cent available for India vs Pakistan match': Rohit Sharma's ground-breaking update

Gill had missed India's opening two encounters in the World Cup - against Australia and Afghanistan - as he was down with dengue fever.

Team India has been all but relieved from their only headache going into the blockbuster 2023 ODI World Cup match against Pakistan at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Saturday as captain Rohit Sharma, in the pre-match presser on Friday, revealed that Shubman Gill is "99 per cent" available for selection for humongous tie. Gill had missed India's opening two encounters in the World Cup - against Australia and Afghanistan - as he was down with dengue fever, but the huge update from the Indian camp came hours after Gill was spotted having an extensive net session in Ahmedabad on Thursday morning.

India's Shubman Gill (ANI)

Last week, upon his arrival in Chennai for India's World Cup opener against Australia, Gill tested positive for a viral infection. He was admitted to a city hospital the following day due to a drop in his platelet count. Despite being discharged the next evening, the BCCI ruled him out of the Afghanistan game in Delhi, and as a result, he did not travel with the team.

On Thursday, Gill had arrived in Ahmedabad and according to a report, he headed straight to the Narendra Modi Stadium at around 11 AM and spent over an hour practicing. After some warm-up exercises, he went to the batting nets with Gujarat Cricket Association (GCA) having arranged six net bowlers and a throwdown specialist for the star opener.

The positive update on Gill's health comes as a massive news for Team India heading into the clash against Pakistan. He has been India's most in-form ODI batter this year, having notched up 1230 runs, the most by any batter in this format in 2023, at 72.35 with five centuries and as many fifties. Moreover, the 24-year-old loves to bat in Ahmedabad, where he has scored 280 runs in five innings which includes two centuries, both scored this year - one on T20Is and other in Tests. Besides, as part of his IPL team Gujarat Titans, Gill smashed 572 runs, the most by any player at a single venue (Ahmedabad) in an IPL season in India, in nine innings in the 2023 season which included two hundreds and three fifties.

Even though Rohit might have left out that 1 per cent of chance on Gill's availability for Saturday's match, the star opener looked determined to confirm his spot as he was spotted in the nets, twice, late on Friday evening and batted close to an hour. Gill played some crisp on-drives and a few lofted shots against veteran spinner Ravichandran Ashwin and never looked in any discomfort. Against Mohammed Shami, Gill was however more cautious, although he did unleash a few savage cuts against a left-arm pacer summoned for the net session. Later, he also faced some heavy-duty fast deliveries from Nuwan, Raghu and Vikram Rathour.

Gill's return to the playing XI would imply that India would bench Ishan Kishan, who had opened in his stead. The left-hander had only managed two runs against Australia before struggling his way to a run-a-ball 47 against Afghanistan.