India captain Shubman Gill warned that the squad cannot sustain frequent injuries if it hopes to remain a serious contender for the 2027 ODI World Cup. He made this point after India’s loss in the decisive match against England at Lord’s on Sunday, stressing that both players and the BCCI medical team must prioritize improving fitness moving forward.At Lord’s, India was unable to field its strongest lineup, as several members of the original 15‑man squad were unavailable. Jasprit Bumrah missed the game due to an impact injury suffered in the Cardiff ODI, Washington Sundar was out with a hamstring strain from Cardiff, Harshit Rana picked up a hamstring problem during the England T20I series, and Nitish Kumar Reddy did not travel to the UK after sustaining a quadriceps injury in India’s home ODI series against Afghanistan in June. Gill noted that these absences forced the team to alter its composition, sometimes at the last minute.
“When we look at the squad we named for the England ODI series, at least five of those players were unavailable for this match,” Gill said after the decider. “If one player is injured we call up a replacement; with two injuries we adjust again. But when players are missing after almost every game, we are clearly overlooking something important.”
“Our aim is to win the World Cup, which requires us to play 11 matches in a row. Yet we struggle to get through even a two‑ or three‑match series without players breaking down. This limitation means our athletes cannot maintain continuity; they play a game or two, pick up a niggle, and we are forced to reshuffle the lineup away from our original plan.”
“It becomes tricky when we arrive at the ground and discover a player is carrying a niggle. Do we risk playing someone who is only about 80 % fit? If we rely on five bowlers and that player breaks down after five overs, who will cover the remainder? This situation is difficult, and as a unit we must improve our overall fitness and address these issues.”
“Reflecting on the Lord’s loss, which turned into a high‑scoring affair, Gill said India’s bowlers conceded too many loose deliveries in both the opening and closing ten overs, allowing the momentum to swing in England’s favor.”
Shubman Gill gave India a solid start in the chase, but they ultimately fell short of the massive target.•BCCI
“Our bowling lacks experience,” he admitted. “We came under pressure in this match and failed to respond effectively. We got off to a slow start in the powerplay, leaked too many easy balls, and spent the rest of the innings chasing wickets without success. By that point, the game had already slipped away.”
“In the final three overs we conceded 62‑63 runs, which completely shifted the momentum. At one stage we were targeting 340‑350, but England edged toward 390. Chasing nearly 400 runs is never easy, regardless of the surface.”
Gill explained that the decision to play only one spinner—Axes Patel—stemmed from the pitches in Birmingham and Cardiff, which offered little assistance to spin bowlers, who largely fulfilled a defensive role in the first two ODIs.
“For the first two ODIs India used three bowling all‑rounders—Axar, Washington and Shivam Dube—but at Lord’s both Washington and Dube were unavailable. Washington was ruled out with injury, while Dube was benched and replaced by specialist fast bowler Prince Yadav.”
Gill added that introducing an extra fast bowler was intended to create an attacking option in the middle overs, and it also explained why Kuldeep Yadav, the team’s sole wrist‑spinner, did not feature in any match during the series, whether in the T20Is or ODIs.
“According to Gill, the pitch slowed noticeably during the second half of India’s innings, hindering the chase of a large target despite being ahead of England until the 45‑over mark.”
“Despite the defeat, Gill felt India produced a respectable performance throughout the series. He noted that the side was competitive for roughly 80 % of the match, but fell short in the decisive moments that often determine the outcome. To improve, India must assess conditions more intelligently and reduce the number of runs conceded by its seamers in the powerplay, where England amassed 58 runs.”
