After the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Saturday, January 11 announced India's squad for the five-match T20I series against England, starting from January 22, several members of the men's senior team did not find their name, including the likes of Shubman Gill, Rishabh Pant, among others.

Moreover, the senior members were rested for the T20I series, in order to keep them fit for the ODI series, followed by the ICC Men's Champions Trophy 2025.

In the latest turn of events, young Indian batter Shubman Gill is expected to return to his state team, Punjab for the upcoming round of Ranji Trophy 2024-25. According to reports making rounds, Shubman Gill is set to feature in Punjab's Ranji Trophy clash against Karnataka, scheduled to start from January 23.

Shubman Gill confirms availability for Punjab's upcoming Ranji Trophy clash against Karnataka

As reported by several media houses, Shubman Gill, who had an ordinary campaign in the recently-concluded Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) 2024-25, has confirmed his availability for the sixth-round of Ranji Trophy match, where Punjab will take on Karnataka from Thursday, January 23 onwards at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru. Moreover, this will be his first appearance since the 2022 quarter-final against Madhya Pradesh in Alur.

Furthermore, it has to be seen that the move of Gill to play red-ball cricket, allows him to collaborate with Punjab's head coach Wasim Jaffer, the highest-run scorer in Ranji Trophy history. Gill has been inconsistent outside Asia, where he averages just 17.64 across 18 innings since mid-2021.

Abhishek Sharma and Arshdeep Singh to miss Punjab's Ranji Trophy campaign

Additionally, Indian T20I opener Abhishek Sharma and pacer Arshdeep SIngh will be absent from Punjab's Ranji Trophy campaign due to national commitments. The two players have been named in India's T20I squad for five-match series against England. While the first T20I is scheduled to be played on January 22 at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata, followed by a match on January 25, January 28, January 31 and February 2 in Chennai, Rajkot, Pune and Mumbai respectively.