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Gill-Gambhir pair’s first test, many new faces will get a chance against Afghanistan
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Gill-Gambhir pair’s first test, many new faces will get a chance against Afghanistan

me.sumitji@gmail.com 12 Jun 2026 3 days ago

The Indian cricket team will begin preparations for next year’s World Cup with a three-match ODI series against Afghanistan starting here on Saturday.
While Rohit Sharma’s match fitness will be tested in this series, Nitish Kumar Reddy’s performance as the backup to injured Hardik Pandya will also be closely monitored.
Rohit, who missed a few matches during the IPL due to a hamstring injury, is fully fit in time for the three-match series against Afghanistan, but the Indian team and the spectators will miss Virat Kohli who has been ruled out of the series due to a hamstring injury.

Gill-Gambhir pair's first test, many new faces will get a chance against Afghanistan

India is preparing for the World Cup to be held in South Africa in October-November 2027. In such a situation, there is doubt whether 39-year-old Rohit will remain in the team till the ODI World Cup or not. Even though age may not be on his side, he has been able to maintain consistency in his performances.
India has to play around 25 ODI matches before the World Cup, which will give the team ample opportunity to try out players and different combinations.
Under the captaincy of Shubman Gill, India has played three ODI series, out of which it had to face defeat in two. Together with head coach Gautam Gambhir, he would like to leave no stone unturned in improving this record.
Gill and Rohit are expected to open the innings, while in Kohli’s absence, one of Ishan Kishan and Yashasvi Jaiswal could be fielded at number three.

Shreyas Iyer, the newly appointed captain of the Indian T20 team, will bat at number four. Team’s number one wicketkeeper batsman KL Rahul is part of the middle order. And Nitish Kumar Reddy will probably bat at number six after him.
Reddy’s batting ability has never been in doubt, but whether he will be able to deliver consistent bowling performances as Hardik’s back-up remains to be seen.
Like Hardik, Reddy has also suffered from injuries and the selectors will be keen to see if he is capable enough to bowl 10 overs with his medium pace bowling.
Reddy has been a dynamic presence with both bat and ball in the IPL and he will aim to replicate the same form in ODI cricket.
On the pitch situated at the height of Dharamsala, the ball usually reaches the batsman with good pace and bounce.

The second all-rounder in the team is off-spinner Washington Sundar. Kuldeep Yadav can be another option in spin bowling but he is not in good form right now. However, Kuldeep has taken 194 wickets in 120 ODIs and his experience matters a lot.
Left-arm spinner Harsh Dubey, who has not played international cricket yet, is another spin bowling option in the team. Dubey is also a good batsman.
Arshdeep Singh and Prasidh Krishna will lead the fast bowling attack, while Prince Yadav or Gurnoor Brar could make their international debut as the third fast bowler.
Both Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj have been rested from this series under workload management.

Afghanistan had to face a crushing defeat in the only test match against India but their team is very good in limited overs cricket.
The team will be strengthened by the return of Rashid Khan, who is currently playing red ball cricket after back surgery. Not playing.
Experienced Mohammad Nabi will also provide balance to the team led by Hashmatullah Shahidi.
Afghanistan will look to take inspiration from their performance in the 2023 ODI World Cup in India when they came very close to reaching the semi-finals.
Fast bowler Mohammad Salim, who took six wickets in the Test match played in Chandigarh, has been included in the ODI team.

The teams are as follows:
India: Shubman Gill (captain), Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Kuldeep Yadav, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Prasidh Krishna, Shreyas Iyer, Rohit Sharma, Hardik Pandya, Washington Sundar, Harsh Dubey, Ishan Kishan, Arshdeep Singh, Gurnoor Brar, Prince Yadav.
Afghanistan: Hashmatullah Shahidi (captain), Sediqullah Atal, Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Ikram Alikhil (wk), Azmatullah Umarzai, Bilal Sami, Nangeyalia Kharoti, Fareed Ahmed Malik, AM Ghazanfar, Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan, Darwish Rasooli, Ibrahim Zadran, Zia ur Rehman. Sharifi.
The match will start at 1.30 pm (Indian time).

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