KL Rahul to be dropped? Rohit Sharma hints at Shubman Gill's return for Pune Test vs NZ

India National Cricket Team skipper Rohit Sharma provided a massive update about the availability of the star batter Shubman Gill for the second Test of the three-match series against the New Zealand National Cricket Team.

The Men In Blue and the BlackCaps are all set to play the second Test match from Thursday, October 24, at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Pune.

Shubman Gill seems okay - Rohit Sharma

India's No.3 Shubman Gill missed out on playing XI in the Test series opener against the New Zealand National Cricket Team at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru due to a stiff neck.

In his place, Sarfaraz Khan was included in the team, and the youngster played an exceptional knock of 150 runs in the second innings and was involved in two gigantic partnerships with Virat Kohli and Rishabh Pant. Also, Kohli batted at Gill's No.3 position.

In the middle of the match, Gill was seen doing training on the ground and even after the match, he was seen doing batting practice in Bengaluru with an aim to stage his comeback to the team.

Shubman Gill is gearing up for his return. #INDvNZ pic.twitter.com/KaOCz8cY0k

— RevSportz Global (@RevSportzGlobal) October 20, 2024

Meanwhile, Rohit Sharma provided an update about Shubman Gill during the interaction with the reporters in Bengaluru. The Indian skipper stated that Gill is fine at the moment, hinting at his comeback to the playing XI for the second Test.

"Shubman Gill seems okay at this point in time," the India National Cricket Team skipper said at the post-match press conference.

With Sarfaraz smashing a brilliant ton, there is a high possibility of him retaining his place in the playing XI, which means KL Rahul, who bagged a duck in the first innings and scored just 12 runs in the second innings, could make way for Gill if he gets fully fit to compete.

It's easy to let the game drift away but these guys are different - Rohit Sharma

Rohit Sharma also spoke about the fightback of his team after being bowled out for 46 in the first innings. He said that the partnership between Rachin Ravindra and Tim Southee pushed them way behind in the match, but they bounced back strong. Rohit Sharma elaborated:

"It was brilliant, especially after going behind that much. It's easy to let the game drift away but these guys are different. After day 1, nothing went our way.

"That partnership between Rachin and Southee went just too ahead. But batting wise in the second innings, it didn't feel like we are 350 runs behind. All in all, apart from the first two three hours, we were there."

India conceded 402 runs from New Zealand after being bowled out for 46 in the first innings and then piled up 462 runs in the second innings to give themselves a small chance for the win.

However, the Kiwis remained calm on the final day and easily went past the finishing line to win the match by 8 wickets.