India Names Squad for T20I Series Against Afghanistan and Asian Games

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has announced a 15-member squad for the upcoming T20I series against Afghanistan, set to take place at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi. The matches are scheduled for September 13, 15, and 17. Key inclusions such as Jasprit Bumrah, Washington Sundar, Nitish Kumar Reddy, and Harshit Rana are subject to fitness checks, as all players are currently undergoing rehabilitation at the BCCI's Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru.

Jasprit Bumrah is making his return to the team after missing the recently concluded two-Test series against Sri Lanka due to a knee injury sustained during the ODI series in England in July. Both Reddy and Sundar had been sidelined with hamstring issues. Senior all-rounder Hardik Pandya is not part of the squad as he continues his recovery from a quadriceps injury.

Under the captaincy of Shreyas Iyer, the same squad will also participate in the Asian Games later this month. Sanju Samson returns as wicketkeeper after being omitted from the last T20I series against Zimbabwe in July. Notably, spinner Kuldeep Yadav and middle-order batter Rinku Singh have been left out of this selection.

The spin department will feature Varun Chakravarthy, Axar Patel, and Ravi Bishnoi, alongside Sundar. Meanwhile, the pace attack includes Arshdeep Singh, Bumrah, and Rana, with moments of medium pace expected from all-rounders Shivam Dube and Reddy.

The complete squad for the T20I series against Afghanistan is as follows: Shreyas Iyer (Captain), Abhishek Sharma, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Sanju Samson (wicketkeeper), Ishan Kishan (wicketkeeper), Tilak Varma (vice-captain), Shivam Dube, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Varun Chakravarthy, Ravi Bishnoi, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, and Harshit Rana.

*Subject to fitness clearance.