Gill is likely to miss the first Test in Perth, according to ESPNcricinfo. Earlier on Saturday, ESPNCricinfo reported that Gill sustained a left-hand injury while fielding in the slips and did not return on the second day of the intra-squad match. It remains unclear whether the injury will impact his availability for the opening Test at the Optus Stadium. Even though the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) haven’t made any official confirmation about Gill’s injury, however, it is being reported that he will miss the upcoming Test against Australia. During the simulation match, Gill scored 28 in his first innings before being caught at gully off Navdeep Saini’s delivery. He later returned to the crease and remained unbeaten on 42*. The young batter will look to emulate Cheteshwar Pujara’s role, who was known for wearing down Australian bowlers with his solid defence. In 14 matches batting at number three, Gill has scored 926 runs at an average of 42.09, with three centuries and three fifties, including a highest score of 119*. This year, he has been in excellent form, amassing 806 runs at an average of 47.41 in 19 innings, with three centuries and three fifties, his highest score also being 119*. Also, Gill’s long-time opening partner and Indian skipper Rohit is also likely to miss out on the Perth Test. In his absence, top seamer Jasprit Bumrah will lead Team India in the Perth Test, as per ESPNCricinfo. The report stated that Rohit stayed back home for the birth of his second child and will join the India squad ahead of the second Test in Adelaide, which will be kicking off from December 4. However, Rohit Sharma will be available for the two-day pink-ball warm-up game against the Australian Prime Minister’s XI before the second Test of the prestigious BGT series. Rohit’s recent numbers are underwhelming. Across five Tests against Bangladesh and New Zealand, he scored 133 runs in 10 innings, averaging only 13.30, with a best score of 52. His scores in the home season were: 6, 5, 23, 8, 2, 52, 0, 8, 18, and 11. Getting the right amount of game time would be challenge for Hitman as he balances sport and personal life. In an encouraging development, Team India’s physio offered clarity on batter KL Rahul’s status for the first Test, saying that the veteran is “ready to go” despite being hit on his elbow during an intra-squad match simulation session at Perth’s WACA ground. On Friday, Rahul walked off the field after suffering an elbow blow during India’s intra-squad match simulation and did not feature in any further training for remainder of the day and the next day. He returned to action on the field on Sunday. The incident occurred when Rahul was struck on his right elbow by a rising delivery from Prasidh Krishna in the WACA stadium. Despite initial attempts to continue batting after receiving medical attention, Rahul had to leave the field for 29 and did not return to bat further. Rahul put in some solid work in nets on Sunday, in a training session of nearly three hours. After two days of match simulation, which featured India’s main XI against a line-up comprising of fringe and India A players, some squad players trained on WACA ground’s centre wicket and nets. Rahul spent an hour on nets before a short workout in the nets. There were no signs of discomfort as far as he was concerned, but he did not look as fluent as he looked before the elbow hit while opening with Yashasvi Jaiswal. On Sunday, the BCCI provided an update on Rahul’s fitness through a video posted on their X handle. BCCI physio Kamlesh Jain stated, “The key for us is to make sure there is no fracture or bony lesions in there. 48 hours since the impact and he’s responded well to treatments. He should be ready to go.” Yogesh Parmar, another Team India physio, added, “I took him for the X-ray and scan and based upon the reporting, I was confident that he should be fine. It was just a matter of controlling the pain and giving him some confidence. So, from a medical point of view, he is absolutely fine.” With these reassurances from the medical staff, it appears that Rahul should be fit to play the first Test against Australia in Perth. The much anticipated Border-Gavaskar series between India and Australia will begin on November 22, with the first Test at Perth. The second Test, scheduled for December 6 to 10 at Adelaide Oval, will feature the exciting day-night format under the stadium’s lights. After that, fans will turn their attention to The Gabba in Brisbane for the third Test, which will be held from December 14 to 18. The customary Boxing Day Test, set for December 26 to 30 at Melbourne’s storied Melbourne Cricket Ground, will bring the series to its penultimate stage. The fifth and final Test, to take place at the Sydney Cricket Ground from January 3 to 7, will serve as the series climax, promising a dramatic conclusion to an exciting contest. India’s squad for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy: Rohit Sharma (C), Jasprit Bumrah (VC), Ravindra Jadeja, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Dhruv Jurel (Wk), Sarfaraz Khan, Virat Kohli, Prasidh Krishna, Ravichandran Ashwin, Mohammed Shami, Rishabh Pant (Wk), KL Rahul, Harshit Rana, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Shubman Gill, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Mohammed Siraj, Washington Sundar.