India will lock horns against Afghanistan in the first T20I at Mohali on Thursday. Both teams will look to draw first blood in the series and get off to a winning start. With the T20 World Cup 2024 set to be played in June, both teams will aim to make the most of this series to prepare themselves in the best possible manner.
We look at the current form, head-to-head, players to look out for, and squads of both teams in our match preview.
Current form for Afghanistan: W L W W W
Afghanistan won their previous T20I series against UAE by 2-1 but there is no doubt that they will have their work cut out against the potent Indian team. Afghanistan will also miss the services of Rashid Khan, who is still recovering after undergoing a back surgery.
Current form for India: W L W W L
India was able to draw their last T20I series against South Africa whereas they won against Australia. With only three T20Is to go before India play their maiden match of the T20 World Cup, the Men in Blue will look to get their combination right.
Head to Head: Matches: 5, Won by India: 4, Won by Afghanistan: 0, NR: 1.
Afghanistan is still searching for their first win against India.
Players to look out for: Rohit Sharma, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rinku Singh, Sanju Samson, Tilak Varma, Kuldeep Yadav, and Arshdeep Singh will hold the key for India.
Hazratullah Zazai, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Ibrahim Zadran, Mohammad Nabi, Mujeeb ur Rahman, Noor Ahmad, and Naveen-ul-Haq will be the crucial players for Afghanistan.
Afghanistan Squad: Hazratullah Zazai, Rahmanullah Gurbaz(w), Ibrahim Zadran(c), Najibullah Zadran, Mohammad Nabi, Azmatullah Omarzai, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Sharafuddin Ashraf, Qais Ahmad, Naveen-ul-Haq, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Noor Ahmad, Mohammad Saleem Safi, Karim Janat, Ikram Alikhil, Fareed Ahmad Malik, Rahmat Shah, Gulbadin Naib.
India Squad: Rohit Sharma(c), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Tilak Varma, Rinku Singh, Sanju Samson(w), Axar Patel, Arshdeep Singh, Avesh Khan, Kuldeep Yadav, Mukesh Kumar, Jitesh Sharma, Washington Sundar, Shivam Dube, Ravi Bishnoi
