Shubman Gill reports to BCCI centre ahead of Asia Cup, skips Duleep Trophy due to flu

India’s Test captain and T20 vice-captain Shubman Gill reported to the BCCI Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Bengaluru for fitness tests and pre-tournament preparations before the Asia Cup in Dubai.

The Indian squad is set to gather in Dubai on September 4, ahead of their opening clash against hosts United Arab Emirates on September 9. Unlike previous years when the team assembled in Mumbai to travel together, this time the players will head to Dubai in phases from their respective bases. Gill is likely to fly directly from Bengaluru.

The young opener had been sidelined from the ongoing Duleep Trophy quarterfinals, where he was slated to lead North Zone, after being down with flu. He spent the recovery period at his home in Chandigarh before resuming preparations.

Wicketkeeper-batter Jitesh Sharma has also checked in at the CoE. PTI understands that several other Asia Cup-bound cricketers, including Jasprit Bumrah, Washington Sundar, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Mohammad Siraj and Shardul Thakur, are expected to join shortly for mandatory assessments.

Thakur, named West Zone skipper for the Duleep Trophy semifinals, along with Jaiswal and Sundar, who are on the Asia Cup standby list, are likely to feature in the tournament’s knockout stages. Meanwhile, Arshdeep Singh (North Zone), Harshit Rana (North Zone) and Kuldeep Yadav (Central Zone) are already active in the quarterfinals.

South Zone, however, will need to appoint a new captain for the semifinals (September 4–7) after Tilak Varma’s call-up to the Asia Cup squad. Current vice-captain Mohammed Azharuddeen is the frontrunner, though experienced players such as R Sai Kishore, Devdutt Padikkal or N Jagadeesan are also being considered.

East Zone faced a setback after pacer Mukesh Kumar appeared to pick up a niggle. The Bengal bowler, who briefly left the field during the first innings to tend to his thigh/groin, did not take the ball in the second innings on Day 3, though he did bat for his side earlier.