3 players who can open for India if Shubman Gill is ruled out of Australia clash in 2023 World Cup ft. Ishan Kishan

Shubman Gill will likely miss India's first match of the 2023 World Cup against Australia this Sunday (October 8). The young Indian batter has reportedly tested positive for dengue fever, which is why he is unlikely to participate in the game at the MA Chidambaram Stadium.

If Shubman Gill is unavailable, it will be a massive blow to India's chances because he has been a consistent performer for the team this year. Gill played well in the recently concluded ODI series against Australia also, which is why his absence will hurt the team.

Nevertheless, captain Rohit Sharma, head coach Rahul Dravid and chief selector Ajit Agarkar have worked hard to ensure that the team has multiple backup options available for each position. In this listicle, we will look at the three possible players who can take Shubman Gill's opening spot if he is unavailable for India's 2023 World Cup opener.

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#1 Ishan Kishan is the favorite to take Shubman Gill's place in India's playing XI

Ishan Kishan has been groomed as a backup opener for India, heading into the 2023 World Cup. The left-handed batter received multiple opportunities to open the batting for the Men in Blue in the ODI format over the last 12 months. He made the most out of those chances by contributing properly to the team's total.

Kishan scored a double hundred in an ODI against Bangladesh while opening the batting last year. He also opened with Shubman Gill in the Asia Cup 2023 final, and before that, Kishan slammed three half-centuries on the trot as an opener in the away series against West Indies.

Considering how the team management used Ishan Kishan as a backup opener on the road to the 2023 World Cup, he is the favorite to take Shubman Gill's spot on Sunday.

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#2 KL Rahul

KL Rahul has been an opening batter for India in ODI cricket in the past. In fact, he was Rohit Sharma's opening partner in the second phase of the 2019 World Cup after Shikhar Dhawan got injured.

The pair of Rahul and Rohit has achieved a lot of success together. If the team management wants to follow the 2019 World Cup and continue to have three right-handers in the top 3, they can promote KL Rahul to the opening slot and use Ishan Kishan, Shreyas Iyer and Suryakumar Yadav in the middle-order.

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#3 Suryakumar Yadav

Although Suryakumar Yadav has majorly played as a middle-order batter for India, the Men in Blue can think of unleashing Mr. 360 in the powerplay overs against Australia. Teams like England and New Zealand have shown that the early runs in the powerplay can put the opposition team under a lot of pressure.

Yadav has never opened the batting in ODIs, but he has done in the T20I format, where he has scored 135 runs in four innings as an opener. His average is 33.75, while his strike rate is 168.75. If Yadav can score a quick 20-ball 35 or a 30-ball 50 at the top of the order, India can get a headstart against Australia.