IND vs PAK: 'Feel for him' - Rohit Sharma as Shumban Gill recovers from dengue to replace Ishan Kishan in eleven

Add as a preferred source on Google

IND vs PAK, World Cup 2023: Opener Shubman Gill replaced Ishan Kishan in the India playing eleven in the match against Pakistan after recovering from dengue. The 24-year-old missed the first two matches and Kishan opened alongside Rohit Sharma in his absence.

Shubman Gill did not travel to Delhi for India's match against Afghanistan. He stayed in Chennai where India played their first match against Australia and flew directly to Ahmedabad for the marquee clash against arch-rivals Pakistan.

The right-hand batter also turned up for the practice session at the Narendra Modi Stadium ahead of the match. Rohit Sharma confirmed Gill's recovery at toss and said he would replace Ishan Kishan in the playing eleven.

"Gill is back in place of Ishan, unfortunate for Ishan to miss out, feel for him, he stepped up when we needed him. Gill has been a special player for us over the past year or so, especially at this ground and we wanted him back," Rohit Sharma said after winning the toss and opting to bowl first.

Ishan Kishan was dismissed for a golden duck against Australia but bounced back with a 47-run knock against Afghanistan at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi on Wednesday. Earlier, he played a memorable 82-run knock against Pakistan in the Asia Cup 2023.

Shubman Gill, the leading ODI run-scorer in 2023, averages 93.33 across formats at the Narendra Modi Stadium. The Punjab batter has a lot of experience playing at the stadium as it's also the home turf for Gujarat Titans (GT) - the franchise which he represents in the IPL.

India and Pakistan have won their respective first two matches of the World Cup 2023. India walk into the match with a 7-0 head-to-head record against Pakistan in the ODI World Cup.