Shubman Gill, who has been struggling with the bat since his return to the format, has been benched owing to a foot injury. India vice-captain Shubman Gill has been reportedly ruled out of the remainder of the five-game series against South Africa on Wednesday in Lucknow as a big opportunity awaits Sanju Samson. Gill, who has been struggling with the bat since his return to the format, incurred a foot injury. Gill “sustained the injury during training session and all precautionary measures are being taken to ensure his speedy recovery.”
Gill failed to match the hype in T20Is that followed his masterful Test series in England earlier in the summer. Since returning to the format for the Asia Cup in September, he has scored just 291 runs in 15 innings at an average of 24.25 and a strike rate of 137.26, without a single fifty. The underwhelming returns sparked criticism and raised questions over his place in India’s plans for the T20 World Cup, scheduled to begin next February. However, his bid to turn things around and cement his case for the global event has now been derailed by injury.
With Gill out, Samson is set to be picked as the opener. This will be his first performance in the format since India decided to move on from ‘project Samson at No. 5/6’ midway through the series in Australia in October earlier this year. Jitesh Sharma has since taken over the role. Samson was earlier forced to relinquish his opening spot, despite scoring three centuries in the last 12 months, with BCCI bringing back Gill to the T20Is.
Amid Gill’s slump in form, the match will presents a perfect opportunity for Samson to force a question on BCCI’s World Cup plans. Talking about the fourth T20I, the game in Lucknow faced a delayed start due to “excessive fog” in Lucknow. It was scheduled to begin at 7 pm, with the toss at 6:30 pm, but both were delayed following an inspection at 6:50 pm. The start was pushed back further after another inspection was scheduled for 7:30 pm and then at 8:00 pm. The final T20I of the match will be played in Ahmedabad on December 19.
