Star Manchester City striker gifts autographed boots to Shubman Gill ahead of IND vs NZ 2026 series [Watch]

An epic crossover occurred as Team India skipper Shubman Gill met Norwegian and Manchester City footballer Erling Haaland yesterday as Nike's brand ambassadors. In a video that surfaced on social media, Haaland was seen gifting the star batter his autographed boots as the two also clicked a picture following that.

It is not the first time that the right-hander met Haaland. Gill had met the star footballer and his other Manchester City teammates when he was in England for the 2023 World Test Championship (WTC) final. Both the elite sportspersons were also wearing the white Nike jersey and the fans were in awe seeing the two together.

Here's the video of the moment:

On the cricketing side of things, the Indian ODI and Test captain is reportedly set to play for Punjab in the Vijay Hazare Trophy fixtures against Sikkim and Goa on January 3 and 6, respectively. Gill's Punjab teammate Arshdeep Singh is also expected to play in the 50-over tournament. The Punjab-born cricketer has promising numbers in the Vijay Hazare Trophy, scoring 815 runs in 19 games, averaging 45.27 with three centuries and as many fifties.

Shubman Gill to return to the ODI side for the 50-over leg against New Zealand

Shubman Gill is set to play the Vijay Hazare Trophy soon. (Image Credits: Getty)

Following his commitments for the Vijay Hazare Trophy, the right-hander will be available for the ODI series against New Zealand, beginning on January 11 in Vadodara. Although the BCCI is yet to announce the squad, it is expected that Gill will return to the fold and slot as an opener alongside Rohit Sharma

He had missed the series against South Africa due to recovering from the neck injury, prompting the selectors to give Yashasvi Jaiswal an opportunity.

The 26-year-old struggled in his first ODI series as captain as he returned the tour of Australia with scores of 10, 9 and 24. Having been dropped from the squad for the T20 World Cup, the youngster will be keen to establish his supremacy in ODI cricket.

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Edited by Sooryanarayanan Sesha