Copyright latestly
David Warner is undoubtedly one of the greatest players to have played the game in modern-day cricket. Not just in international cricket, but the Australian also had a massive impact in the IPL (Indian Premier League), a tournament where he is among the highest run-scorers and had even captained the Sunrisers Hyderabad to their first and only title so far. He is among those overseas cricket figures who are immensely loved across India. Recently, a post on X has gone viral, which has suggested that David Warner had chatted with Shubman Gill, who was a ball boy at the time of IPL 2013. And in this article, we shall take a look at the truth behind the viral claim. Fact Check: Did Virat Kohli Give Fan An Autograph on Pakistan Jersey Ahead of IND vs AUS 1st ODI 2025? Here's the Truth Behind Viral Photo. It started with a post on X that claimed that David Warner chatted with a ball boy in Eden Gardens after he dismissed off the first ball he faced off a spinner in the 2013 IPL opener between Delhi Capitals (then known as Delhi Daredevils) and Kolkata Knight Riders. The post stated that after chatting with the ball boy, David Warner's stats vs spin improved drastically. An account on X with the username 'ittzz_rahul' claimed that the ball boy with whom David Warner had a chat is now the captain of the Indian team. As the post went viral, several netizens flooded the comments section suggesting that the ball boy in question was none other than Shubman Gill, who is now the Team India Test and ODI captain. It has to be noted that Team India's T20I captain is Suryakumar Yadav and he was not a ball boy in the 2013 IPL. As a matter of fact, he would go on to join KKR next year and win the title with the team then led by current Team India head coach Gautam Gambhir. Fact Check: Did Virat Kohli Leave For London After Duck in IND vs AUS 2nd ODI 2025 to Attend Son Akaay's Parent-Teacher Meeting? Here's the Truth. The picture that is being referred to here has David Warner chatting with three ball boys, one of whom fans felt resembled Shubman Gill and it led many to believe that it was him who was talking with the Australian cricketer. Viral Fake Post Claiming David Warner Chatted With 'Ball Boy' Shubman Gill During IPL 2013 Opener That ball boy is now indian team captain. Time flies https://t.co/5vriGSpyor — Rahul (@ittzz_rahul) October 27, 2025 Fan Feels It is Shubman Gill That's is @ShubmanGill paji pic.twitter.com/D8PfM6ryY0 — Sachin (@TheSachinKing) October 28, 2025 'That Looks Like Gill' That looks like Gill — Ragzz (@cool6feetguy) October 28, 2025 Another Similar Claim Oh shit, is that Gill ?... — Archit Aryaman (@AryamanArchit) October 28, 2025 "Gill Hai Kya Woh?" Gill hai kya woh? — Myshkin (@Myshkin_kully45) October 28, 2025 Here's the Truth Behind Viral Claim Now, what has been claimed is totally false and has no foundation in reality. We are not fact-checking the fact that David Warner really chatted with the ball boys after his dismissal to spin in the IPL 2013 opener and whether his stats increased dramatically after that. What we are talking about here is whether either of the three ball boys was Shubman Gill. And the clear answer to that is no. Apart from the ball boy in the middle who slightly resembles Shubman Gill, no one else in the picture has any similarity in looks with Team India's ODI captain. Grok AI went about answering this same query, which some fans had, as they wondered if the ball boy in question was Shubman Gill. Confirmation Unable if Ball Boy Was Shubman Gill The thread refers to a 2013 IPL story where David Warner, after being dismissed by spin, got tips from a ball boy on playing it better. The post claims that boy was a young Shubman Gill, now India's ODI captain in 2025. Warner's spin stats improved post-chat (avg 59, SR 144). I… — Grok (@grok) October 28, 2025 Grok AI reckons It to Be Fun Story The ball boy referenced in the thread appears to be Shubman Gill, who is now India's ODI captain as of October 2025. However, I couldn't confirm from sources that it's definitely him in the 2013 photo—might be a fun story or mix-up! — Grok (@grok) October 28, 2025 Although the post did not mention Shubman Gill as one of the ball boys in the viral picture, it did suggest so, as the other 'Indian team captain' is Suryakumar Yadav who would have been 23-24 years old at that time. There seems to have been no substantial evidence which has mentioned or suggested that Shubman Gill had been a ball boy at the Eden Gardens and hence, the claim is absolutely false.
