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‘KL ko drop karo’ – Fans sceptical about reports of Shubman Gill batting at No. 5 in 1st Border-Gavaskar Trophy Test

Heading into the first Test of the Border Gavaskar Trophy in Nagpur, the Indian Team is in a bit of a conundrum.

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Shubman Gill (Source: Twitter)

Heading into the first Test of the Border Gavaskar Trophy in Nagpur, the Indian Team is in a bit of a conundrum. Team captain Rohit Sharma and head coach Rahul Dravid have to make a big decision of selecting the 2nd opener. KL Rahul and Shubman Gill are the two options in front of the Indian Team.

While Rahul is the team’s regular opener, Gill has been on fire in 2023. According to recent reports, Rahul may open the innings alongside the captain, with Gill batting at No. 5. It was also being speculated that Suryakumar Yadav will be given a chance in the playing XI. However, that does not seem to be the case.

Earlier, when asked if Gill would bat at No. 5, Indian vice-captain Rahul said: “We still haven’t decided on the final XI. It’s going to be a tough decision to make. There are guys who have performed exceedingly well and there are a few spots open so there are a few discussions going on and the players are being spoken to.”

Despite the temptations of using a player like Surya at No. 5 due to his tendency for playing unorthodox shots, former national selector Devang Gandhi believed head coach Rahul Dravid might be more inclined to start Gill in the first Test.

“Shubman had a double hundred in West Indies playing for India ‘A’ in the middle-order. And in the last Test series that he played (against Bangladesh), he got a century,” Gandhi told the Times of India (TOI).

On the other hand, fans were sceptical about the decision to demote the in-form batter down the order. Fans suggested that Gill should open the batting and KL Rahul should be dropped from the playing XI. They suggested that KS Bharat serve as India’s wicketkeeper for the match.

“Doesn’t make sense, with the kind of form he is in, should open, him playing at 5 means again he would be left out when Iyer comes in 2nd test,” a fan wrote.

Here is how Twitter reacted to Shubman Gill batting at No. 5

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