India aims to fine-tune form against official hosts Afghanistan in New Delhi prior to the Asian Games in Japan.
India and Afghanistan are set to meet for a three-match T20I series starting Sunday at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi. In a rare logistical twist, Afghanistan will serve as the official host for the three-game assignment taking place in India's capital city. The series comes ahead of India's participation in the Asian Games in Japan.
India, who secured a second consecutive T20 World Cup title in March, enters the contest as favorites. However, the team looks to solidify its form following a bumpy start under 31-year-old full-time captain Shreyas Iyer. After suffering a shock series defeat to Ireland in June and a 0-4 rout against England, Shreyas registered his first series victory as skipper during a three-match tour of Zimbabwe.
The Indian squad features 15-year-old southpaw Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, who impressed in Harare with two half-centuries after an initial initiation against Jofra Archer and England. India's bowling attack is bolstered by the return of spearhead Jasprit Bumrah, who turns 33 in December, alongside Arshdeep Singh, Yash Thakur, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Varun Chakaravarthy, and Ravi Bishnoi.
Afghanistan enters the series under the new captain-coach combination of Ibrahim Zadran and Richard Pybus. Their squad features a potent pace attack led by Naveen-ul-Haq and Fazalhaq Farooqi, alongside spin options including Rashid Khan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, and Noor Ahmad. The two Asian sides have already faced each other in a one-off Test and three ODIs earlier this year.
Reporting sourced from The Hindu Sport. Photo courtesy The Hindu Sport.