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India
Afghanistan
Afghanistan and India will begin their 3-match T20I series at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi, with India expected to start as the stronger side. India enter the match with 3 wins in their last 5 T20Is, while Afghanistan have 2 wins from their previous 5.
Both teams will also come into this game after successive victories, which will give them confidence. India have the advantage in the recent head-to-head record, with 4 wins and one no result from the last 5 meetings.
Two of those matches have been won by the chasing side, which could make the toss and second-innings conditions important in Delhi.
India will also welcome Jasprit Bumrah back into the T20I squad, while Naveen-ul-Haq will return for Afghanistan. Overall, India will be expected to control the game with their stronger recent record and greater depth across both departments.
Indiaβs aggressive opening pair and stronger batting depth will give them the edge to build the bigger first-wicket stand as compared to Afghanistan.
The betting tip is...
Highest Opening Partnership - India
60 %
40 %
IndiaAfghanistanIndia had named Jasprit Bumrah, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Harshit Rana and Washington Sundar in the squad for the three T20Is against Afghanistan, subject to fitness clearance from the BCCI Centre of Excellence. Sanju Samson, Arshdeep Singh and Axar Patel had returned after being rested for the Zimbabwe series.
Hardik Pandya had missed out as he continued his injury recovery, while Varun Chakravarthy had returned after recovering from a hamstring injury. Bumrah had earlier missed the third ODI in England and the two Tests in Sri Lanka due to a recurrence of his left-knee injury.
Harshit Rana and Washington Sundar had also recovered from hamstring injuries suffered in England, while Nitish Kumar Reddy had recovered from a quadriceps injury sustained against Afghanistan in June.
Abhishek, Iyer and Arshdeep are the key players in the team.
Predicted Lineup: Abhishek Sharma, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Shreyas Iyer (c), Ishan Kishan (wk), Tilak Varma, Shivam Dube, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Axar Patel, Varun Chakravarthy, Arshdeep Singh and Harshit Rana
Afghanistan has brought back fast bowler Naveen-ul-Haq for the series against India after almost two years away from the national side. Naveen last played for Afghanistan in December 2024 before a stress fracture in his right shoulder kept him out for more than 8 months. Ibrahim Zadran has also taken over as captain from Rashid Khan.
Veteran allrounder Mohammad Nabi has returned to the white-ball squad after missing the recent 4-0 ODI series win over Ireland due to his CPL commitments.
Uncapped wicketkeeper-batter Noor ul Rahman had been included as the second wicketkeeper behind Rahmanullah Gurbaz, while spinner Nangeyalia Kharote had returned after missing the T20 World Cup. Shahidullah Kamal had moved to the reserves, Mohammad Ishaq had been dropped, and Gulbadin Naib had been retained.
Zadran, Rashid and Omarzai are the key players in the team.
Predicted Lineup: Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Sediqullah Atal, Ibrahim Zadran (c), Darwish Rasooli, Azmatullah Omarzai, Gulbadin Naib, Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan, Naveen-ul-Haq, Noor Ahmad, Fazalhaq Farooqi
India will make a quick start through Abhishek Sharma and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi at the top of their batting order. Both batters will look to attack in the powerplay, with their T20I strike rates of 187.24 and 189.21 highlighting their intent.
Sooryavanshi has also scored 151 runs in 3 matches during India's 3-0 T20I series win over Zimbabwe, striking at 196.10. Afghanistan have experienced bowlers such as Rashid, Nabi, Fazalhaq Farooqi and Naveen-ul-Haq, but India's opening pair have the pace to put pressure on them early in the powerplay.
India will avoid early wickets and will also build a strong opening stand and gain control of the first six overs. India's deeper batting lineup will also give them more options to maintain the scoring rate after the powerplay and produce the top scorer of the match.
