Gill Looks Good In The Nets

Shubman Gill showed signs of recovery from a thumb injury as he returned to the India nets on Friday.

Gill missed the opening Test in Perth with the fracture he suffered during fielding practice.

In the nets, Gill exhibited some solid defence and handled his bat with comfort as he faced pace and spin.

The batter was seen facing Yash Dayal and Akash Deep in the nets.

'Any ball when it hits the middle of the bat, the feeling that you get, that is the feeling I play for.

'I was just trying to get a feel to be honest, see how the injury is reacting, if any kind of soreness is there but it went much better than what I and Kamlesh bhai (Kamlesh Jain, physio) expected. Very happy with that,' Gill said in a video posted by BCCI on X after the training session in Canberra on Friday.

Gill's absence was not felt in Perth as India won the game by 295 runs but he will hope to continue from where he left off at The Gabba in 2021, where he scored 91 to help India chase down 328 runs on the final day, to win the series, and also hand Australia their first loss at the venue in over 32 years.

Gill and Rohit Sharma's return will add zing to the batting as India prepare to face the Australian Prime Minister's XI in a two-day pink-ball fixture at the Manuka Oval on Saturday, November 30.

In Gill's absence, Devdutt Padikkal came at number three but could not deliver and Gill's return will have good headaches for the selectors ahead of the Test in Adelaide.

However, it is not a given that Gill will return to his usual batting position as K L Rahul excelled as an opener in Perth in Rohit's absence.

While Rohit is expected to open alongside Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rahul could come in at No. number 5.