Gambhir, Agarkar refuse to trust Sarfaraz Khan, show faith in half-fit Shubman Gill as India reject replacement: Report | Cricket
Shubman Gill’s neck injury may not fully heal before the do-or-die second Test against South Africa later this week, but according to PTI, the India captain is desperate to play. The update comes after Gill travelled with the Indian squad to Guwahati on Wednesday.
India have not named a replacement for Shubman Gill
Gill suffered a neck spasm during the opening Test in Kolkata and did not bat in the final innings, where India were bowled out for just 93 in a 124-run chase. He was discharged from the hospital on Sunday and advised rest for a few days, with early reports suggesting he was unlikely to travel to Guwahati for the decider.
However, he went against medical advice and joined the squad. Team sources told PTI that Gill is still far from fully fit. The pain has eased but persists in the nape of his neck, and the 25-year-old is expected to push hard to prove his fitness during training at Barsapara Stadium on Thursday and Friday.
Amid the concern around Gill’s availability, there have been discussions about whether Sai Sudharsan or Devdutt Padikkal, the only other specialist batting options in the squad, should replace him in the line-up. However, with both being left-handers, picking any one of them would mean India would field seven such batters, which would in turn hand South Africa the advantage. In the opening game, eight of off-spinner Simon Harmer’s wickets were left-handers.
There is another school of thought that says India could bring in a right-hander in the likes of Sarfaraz Khan, Karun Nair or Abhimanyu Easwaran from outside. However, the PTI report added that the current coaching staff and selection committee don’t have a lot of faith in them. Moreover, they reckon picking a batter not in the current squad “would signal a massive lack of trust in the youngsters’ ability to handle pressure.” This implies that the Indian team management, who have refused to name a replacement for the skipper, feel a half-fit Gill is better than Nair, Sarfaraz or Easwaran.
Sarfaraz and Easwaran haven’t made a strong case with their recent first-class returns. Easwaran, despite being ahead in the pecking order after spending considerable time with the Test squad, has been inconsistent, with recent scores of 0, 71*, 20, 25, 0 and 0. Sarfaraz, too, has struggled in the ongoing Ranji Trophy.
Nair, meanwhile, has been the most in-form of the three, scoring 73, 8, 174*, 233, 4 and 15 since being dropped after the England tour. Yet the management remains unlikely to revisit his case.
The second match is scheduled to begin on November 22. Barsapara Stadium will host a Test match for the first time in history.
Earlier last week, the reigning World Test champions secured their first win on Indian soil in 15 years. They now stand on the verge of their second-ever Test series win in India.
