Bumrah, Samson back; Pandya misses out as India announce squad for Afghanistan T20Is

India Squad Update: Bumrah & Samson Return, Pandya Out for Afghanistan T20Is

India has named a 15-member squad for the upcoming 3-match T20I series against Afghanistan, prioritizing experience after the experimental Zimbabwe tour. Jasprit Bumrah makes a welcome return to the T20I setup, joining Sanju Samson, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Ravi Bishnoi, Arshdeep Singh, and Harshit Rana, who all missed the recent Zimbabwe series.

However, Hardik Pandya misses out due to a fresh setback in his recovery process. A leg niggle during his comeback training at the BCCI Centre of Excellence has forced him to pause his bowling activities, ruling him out of this series. He has been inactive in competitive cricket since his IPL stint on May 24.

Shreyas Iyer will continue to lead the side, supported by vice-captain Tilak Varma. The squad features a robust batting lineup including Abhishek Sharma, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Shivam Dube, and the WK pair of Samson and Ishan Kishan. The all-rounder role is shared by Dube, Reddy, Axar, and Sundar. While Bumrah, Reddy, Sundar, and Rana are subject to fitness clearance, the pace trio of Bumrah, Arshdeep, and Harshit forms the core attack, supplemented by spinners Varun Chakaravarthy and Ravi Bishnoi.

Eight players from the Zimbabwe tour—Suryansh Shedge, Rinku Singh, Harsh Dubey, Prince Yadav, Yash Thakur, Ashok Sharma, Mayank Yadav, and Prabhsimran Singh—have been dropped for this series as selectors opt for a seasoned unit.

Source: Times of India