 "IND vs AUS: Morkel says Gill not ruled out of 1st Test, hints at Nitish Kumar Reddy debut")
Team India bowling coach Morne Morkel on Wednesday refused to rule out Shubman Gill from the first Test against Australia, which starts in Perth on 22 November. Morkel also dropped a hint that India could hand a debut to all-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy.
Gill suffered a thumb injury while fielding in slips during the intra-squad match simulation on 16 November (Saturday) and while multiple reports have stated that the 25-year-old will not take any part in the first Test which will be played at the Optus Stadium in Perth, Morkel said that the final decision is still to be made.
Gill decision will be taken on Day 1
“Shubman is improving on a day-by-day basis. We will take a call on the morning of the Test. He played well in the match simulation during the build-up, so fingers crossed,” Morkel said during a media interaction in Perth on Wednesday.
The former South African pacer Morkel also talked about the role the seam-bowling all-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy could play and how stand-in captain Jasprit Bumrah could use him, giving a hint that the 21-year-old from Visakhapatnam is set for a Test debut at Perth.
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“He is one of the young guys. Batting all-round ability. He’ll be one guy who can hold one end for us, especially for the first couple of days,” Morkel said.
“Wicket-to-wicket bowler. Any team in the world would want an all-rounder who can help the pacers. It’ll be on Jasprit how he uses them. Definitely a guy to keep an eye on in the series,” Morkel said.
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Regular captain Rohit Sharma will miss the first Test against Australia in Perth as he is on paternity leave .
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More Shorts‘Shami is a world-class bowler’
Morkel added that the team management is keeping a close eye on the progress Mohammed Shami is making. The pacer recently returned to action in the Ranji Trophy after a year-long injury layoff and has also been picked in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy squad for Bengal.
The bowling coach, however, gave no hint of any plan to rush Shami into international cricket.
“We are keeping a close eye on Shami. He has been out for a year. For us, it is a massive win that he is back playing. How can we give him the best support to find his feet again? [We’re] Working closely with the people back home. He is a world-class bowler,” Morkel said.
India need to win the five-match Test series 4-0 against Australia to qualify for the 2025 World Test Championship (WTC) final without depending on other results.
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