Why Shubman Gill is Not Playing Today in IND vs SA 5th T20I?

India and South Africa are set to face each other in the fifth and final T20I of the series at one of the biggest cricket stadiums in the world, the Narendra Modi Stadium, on Friday, December 19. The match would be the decider since the Men in Blue are leading the series 2-1, and a win would help them to end up winning the series 3-1. However, if the Proteas manage to win, the series will end up in a tie, 2-2. Meanwhile, ahead of the match, India have suffered a huge blow as their vice-captain, Shubman Gill, will not play. But the question is, why?

Why Shubman Gill is Not Playing Today in IND vs SA 5th T20I?

The star right-handed batter, Shubman Gill, will miss out on the IND vs SA 5th T20I because he sustained a toe injury during a training session ahead of the 4th T20I in Dharamsala. Gill was also supposed to miss the 4th match; however, the game had to be called off due to excessive fog at the venue. Umpires had to take frequent inspections, and after multiple inspections, they finally decided to abandon the match as the visibility was almost zero.

Interestingly, there was no official announcement from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) regarding Gill’s availability ahead of the 5th T20I. As the 4th T20I was called off, Gill got a lot of time to recover, but it doesn't look like he is fit to play in the final game, and he is rested ahead of the NZ Series 2026.

Who will Open with Abhishek Sharma?

Shubman Gill's unavailability opens a fresh opportunity for other players who have been waiting for a chance in the series to show their talent. And one of those players is Sanju Samson. The Kerala-born cricketer had been warming the bench for the entire series, and he will be opening with Abhishek Sharma. Samson had opened with Abhishek in the T20I format earlier as well and has even performed incredibly well. But Gill’s return in the shortest format forced Samson to change his batting position. Samson had to play as a finisher after Gill snatched his opening position. And India already has a finisher in Jitesh Sharma’s face, who’s also a wicketkeeper, which helped him to play ahead of Samson.

Samson is getting a chance to play in the last game and will try to perform well. However, with India's batting order reshuffling that has been going on recently, this is the final match before the New Zealand series. Samson is getting a chance to prove his worth once again before the squad announcement of the IND squad for the New Zealand series, as well as the ICC T20 World Cup 2026. There will be no surprise if he performs well and cements his slot for opening in the upcoming matches for India.