Shubman Gill’s health status is uncertain for the Asia Cup 2025 due to an illness. While he was named vice-captain, his participation is now in question after being reportedly ruled out of the Duleep Trophy.
Ahead of the Asia Cup 2025, Team India received not-so-good news about Shubman Gill’s health, raising doubts over his participation in the eight-team continental tournament, which will begin on September 9. Gill had an illness just a week before the Duleep Trophy, where he would be captaining the North Zone against East Zone on August 28.
Shubman Gill made his return to the T20I fold as a vice-captain when the BCCI senior men’s team chief selectorAjit Agarkar, announced the 15-member India squad for the Asia Cup at a press conference at the board’s headquarters in Mumbai on Tuesday, August 19. Gill was away from the T20I setup for a year to focus on red-ball cricket, especially the Test series against New Zealand, Australia, and England.
Gill’s return to the T20I further provided a massive boost to India’s batting line-up, which already consisted of Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Sanju Samson, Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya, and Shivam Dube.
Shubman Gill unwell before the Asia Cup 2025
According to a report by Cricbuzz, Shubman Gill has been ruled out of the Duleep Trophy, which will begin next week at the BCCI Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Bengaluru. The report suggested that the North Zone selection committee was in anticipation of Team India’s Test skipper’s unlikely availability for the inter-zonal competition, kickstarting the 2025-26 Indian domestic cricket season.
The report by Cricbuzz stated that the physios examined Shubman Gill, and the report was submitted to the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Saturday, August 22. Currently, Shubman Gill is currently resting at his home in Chandigarh.
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This is not the first time Shubman Gill has had an illness before or during an important tournament. During the 2023 ODI World Cup, the 25-year-old was diagnosed with Dengue and was forced to miss India’s first two matches against Australia and Afghanistan in Chennai and Delhi, respectively. However, Gill managed to recover from dengue and played the remainder of the World Cup, amassing 354 runs, including 4 fifties, at an average of 44.25 in 9 matches.
Will Shubman Gill play the Asia Cup?
As per the report by RevSportz, Shubman Gill is down with viral fever, but nothing serious, as he underwent a blood test as a precautionary measure in Mumbai. However, the report suggested that Gill intends to play the Duleep Trophy unless it’s impossible to play due to illness.
It is unlikely for Shubman Gill to play the inter-zonal tournament, where Arshdeep Singh, Rana, and Anshul Kamboj to play for the North Zone, as the BCCI might want to risk his fitness ahead of the Asia Cup 2025. Since Gill has been appointed as India’s vice-captain for the continental tournament, he will certainly be part of the playing XI if he regains full fitness in time for the opening match against the hosts UAE, on September 10.
Meanwhile, the 15-member India squad led by Suryakumar Yadav, and coaching and support staff led by Gautam Gambhir, will depart for the UAE from Mumbai International Airport on September 5. India will play their Asia Cup fixtures at the Dubai International Stadium.