Rohit Sharma Virat Kohli returns t20 Squad. India will play three Twenty20 International (T20I) matches against Afghanistan from January 11–17. For the first time since November 2022, Rohit Sharma, who was last captain of the Men in Blue, is back in the lineup. Playing in his first T20I since 2022, Virat Kohli is also back in the team. Following the last T20 World Cup, both veteran players refrained from playing in the shortest format.
Their reappearance all but guarantees their inclusion on the 2024 T20 World Cup roster. Before the World Cup, the starting lineup may see significant changes. India’s final series before the 2024 T20 World Cup is against Afghanistan, and it is a very important series.
Check out the probable starting lineup for Team India in the opening Twenty20 International match to be held in Mohali as the home team gets ready for the T20I series:
It is confirmed that Rohit Sharma will start the innings after his return. It’s expected that Yashasvi Jaiswal will be his partner. Being an attacking batsman at the top, the left-hander is probably going to be chosen over Shubman Gill. Yashasvi has the ability to start the squad quickly and exert pressure on the bowlers from the opening over.
Virat Kohli will stay at number three in the batting order. In international cricket, that will not be the case, even though he opens the innings for Royal Challengers Bangalore in the Indian Premier League. He has opened in Twenty20 Internationals before, but the circumstances were very different. Kohli will stay at number three in the batting order.
Gill is probably going to follow him. Following Yashasvi’s debut, the right-handed batsman has been batting at number three in Test matches. He will probably bat in the middle order during the Afghanistan series. He and Yashasvi will probably fight for the same slot on the T20 World Cup roster.
There could not be a space for Ravi Bishnoi if Kuldeep Yadav keeps his position. In the second Twenty20 International against South Africa, Kuldeep earned a five-fer, thus there’s no need to bench him. Ravi may have trouble making the World Cup team, despite being the best bowler in India’s T20I rankings. Throughout the three Twenty20 Internationals in South Africa, he was benched. The three pacers of the team are Avesh Khan, Arshdeep Singh, and Mukesh Kumar. They all appear to be in the playing eleven.
The middle-order will be completed by Jitesh Sharma and Rinku Singh. Jitesh has an advantage against Sanju Samson for a spot in the starting XI and is probably going to be handed a long rope by the team management. Rinku has been officially selected for the starting XI.
Tilak Varma and Washington Sundar are predicted to lose to Axar Patel in the race for a spot in the starting lineup. He may contribute vital runs in addition to taking wickets. Due to Ravindra Jadeja’s absence, he has been called back.
India’s T20I squad
Rohit Sharma (capt), Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Tilak Varma, Rinku Singh, Jitesh Sharma (wk), Sanju Samson (wk), Shivam Dube, Washington Sundar, Axar Patel, Ravi Bishnoi, Kuldeep Yadav, Arshdeep Singh, Avesh Khan, Mukesh Kumar
The Selection Committee of the Afghanistan Cricket Board has selected a 19-man Afghanistan National Squad for the three-match Twenty20 International Series against India, which gets underway in Mohali, India, on Thursday, January 11.
The roster has been extended to include Afghanistan’s usual T20I captain, Rashid Khan, however he may not play in any matches while he recuperates from recent back surgery.
Mujeeb Ur Rahman returns to the team to play India after missing the three-match T20I series against the United Arab Emirates. As the backup wicket-keeper batter, Ikram Alikhil, who played for the reserves against the UAE, has been called up to the starting lineup.
Mr. Mirwais Ashraf, Chairman of the ACB: “We are excited to be going on our first tour to India for a three-match series. It’s great to see AfghanAtalan play a three-match Twenty20 International series against India, the best team in the world. We think AfghanAtalan has performed well recently and are no longer the underdogs, thus we anticipate a very competitive series against India.
Afghanistan Squad:
Muhammad Zadran (C), Ikram Alikhil (WK), Hazratullah Zazai, Rahmat Shah, Najibullah Zadran, Mohammad Nabi, Karim Janat, Azmatullah Omarzai, Sharafuddin Ashraf, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Fareed Ahmad, Fareed Ahmadi, Noor Ahmad, Mohammad Saleem, Qais Ahmad, Gulbadin Naib, and Rashid Khan were the members of the Afghanistan Squad.