The first of the three T20Is between India and Afghanistan will be played on January 11, 2024. This is the first time the two sides are clashing in a bilateral series. The encounter will be played at the IS Bindra PCA Stadium in Mohali.
The two sides have previously met five times in T20Is, with the Indian team winning four encounters, with one ending in no result. India has played four T20Is at Mohali, winning three for a 75% winning percentage.
When the BCCI announced the India squad for the Afghanistan T20Is, Rohit Sharma was named as the captain of the side and Virat Kohli also returned to the format for the first time since T20 World Cup 2022.
India will be without Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Ravindra Jadeja, Jasprit Bumrah, and Mohammed Siraj, who are being rested while Suryakumar Yadav and Hardik Pandya are still recovering from injuries.
Ahead of this mouth-watering encounter, Team COC presents the Predicted Team India XI for the first T20I against Afghanistan in Mohali.
Rohit Sharma returns as captain of the side and is expected to open the innings with Yashasvi Jaiswal. Jaiswal has been mightily impressive at the top with his aggressive style of batting helping India in powerplays.
Shubman Gill might be pushed to the no.3 position with the arrival of Rohit Sharma, while the returning Virat Kohli might play at the no.4 position. This bodes well for India in the absence of Suryakumar Yadav.
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There will be a toss-up between Sanju Samson and Jitesh Sharma for the wicketkeeping spot. Samson is a more accomplished batter, while Jitesh has impressed with his cameos lately. Both are very good and safe wicketkeepers behind the stumps.
With Hardik Pandya and Suryakumar Yadav missing, the finishing duties will be on the shoulders of Rinku Singh. Rinku has been the find of 2023 for India in T20Is and is one of the players who has shown maturity as well.
Akshar Patel and Kuldeep Yadav are expected to be the spinners, with Akshar providing the batting depth. India might also consider bringing in Shivam Dube to give an extra pace option.
Kuldeep Yadav took a fifer in the last T20I he played and it is expected that Ravi Bishnoi might have to bide his time for opportunity.
Arshdeep Singh and Avesh Khan were brilliant in white-ball cricket in South Africa and expect them to be the part of pace unit for the first T20I. The third seamer is expected to be Mukesh Kumar.
COC Predicted Team India playing XI for first T20I against Afghanistan:
Rohit Sharma (C), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Sanju Samson (WK), Rinku Singh, Akshar Patel, Arshdeep Singh, Avesh Khan, Kuldeep Yadav, Mukesh Kumar
