India vice-captain Shubman Gill has been ruled out of the Lucknow T20I against South Africa on Wednesday, December 17 due to a leg injury. Gill, who returned to the team after a neck problem, played the first three T20Is and failed in the first two matches of the series.
Gill is expected to be replaced by Sanju Samson at the top of the order for the game if that happens after the toss was delayed due to heavy fog in Lucknow. Gill returned to the team ahead of the T20I series after missing the ODI against the Proteas. The Indian vice-captain was expected to make a big impact at the top of the order as the South Africa T20Is was a chance for him to redeem himself after a tepid outing during the Asia Cup.
Gill has scored just 32 runs in the three matches so far, falling for four and then a golden duck in the Cuttack and Mullanpur matches. He showed some brief signs of form during the Dharamshala match, scoring 28. He averages 10.66 in the series and has a strike rate of 103.22.
Gill has compiled just 291 runs in 15 matches this year at an average of 24.25 and a strike rate of 137.26. Gill’s failure will come as a blow to India as they have already lost Axar Patel from the rest of the series due to injury.
Axar will miss the last two T20Is due to illness as India enter the final stretch of matches before the T20 World Cup. India have the remaining two matches against the Proteas and then a five-match series against New Zealand at home in January 2026 before February’s ICC.
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Published on:
December 17, 2025
