The ODI rankings witnessed a major shake-up on the opening day of the ICC Champions Trophy with India’s Shubman Gill and Sri Lanka’s Maheesh Theekshana rising to the top of the batting and bowling charts, respectively in the latest update released on Wednesday.
Shubman Gill rose to No 2 in the ICC ODI rankings for batters and is now closing in on former Pakistan skipper Babar Azam’s top spot. Gill closed the gap with Babar after hitting back-to-back fifties in the first two ODIs against England.
Former India cricketer and coach Yograj Singh lauded the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) for their approach towards picking the 15-member squad for the upcoming Champions Trophy 2025.
In 2023-24, the BCCI had stripped Ishan Kishan and Shreyas Iyer of their annual contracts after the duo did not turn up for their respective state sides despite not being on national duty. While the move set a precedent for many, it may not be the same in the case of Rohit Sharma or Virat Kohli — with both the veterans battling a prolonged lean patch in red-ball cricket.
Former India head coach Ravi Shastri said a player of Shubman Gill’s quality must feature in India’s playing eleven in Tests, adding that how he fits in for the Sydney Test against Australia is the team’s call.
Former cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar on Thursday criticized Rohit Sharma-led India's team selection at the Boxing Day Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy against Australia and said that dropping batter Shubman Gill from playing eleven was "harsh".
After a recent horror run with the bat in the first innings of Test matches over the past three months, India will be keen to arrest the trend when they take on Australia in the third of the five-match Test series for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Brisbane on Saturday.
Returning from a left thumb injury, Shubman Gill top-scored with 50 as India beat Prime Minister's XI by six wickets in the 50-over pink-ball warm-up game here at the Manuka Oval on Sunday.
India’s batting coach Abhishek Nayar, who kept a close eye on Gill’s return to the nets with the Indian team in Canberra, believes the batter looks ‘comfortable’ to return back in action.
While fielding in the slips, Gill took a blow to his thumb, leaving the field immediately and not returning for the remainder of the intra-squad match-simulation session.
