Rohit Sharma's return to the India national cricket team T20 squad provided early ominous signs for his side's prospects in Mohali for India vs Afghanistan, 1st T20I, amid the chilly North Indian weather. Sharma won the toss and opted to bowl first, presenting the visitors with the chance to set the hosts a huge target. (Match Blog | Scorecard)
Sharma's XI yielded more than a few surprises, most notable among them the absence of Yashasvi Jaiswal. The Rajasthan Royals batter was only recently designated the opening spot alongside Sharma, but the team list at toss showed no signs of him; instead, Shubman Gill was chosen to open, with Tilak Varma, Shivam Dube, and Jitesh Sharma all coming into the team.
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BCCI later confirmed that Jaiswal was absent due to a groin strain.
Sanju Samson, too, missed out on a place in the playing XI, as did Kuldeep Yadav. There was, however, space for Arshdeep Singh and Mukesh Kumar, with Ravi Bishnoi and Axar Patel joining in as the two spin options.
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India vs Afghanistan, 1st T20I, Playing XIs
India - Rohit Sharma (C), Shubman Gill, Tilak Varma, Shivam Dube, Jitesh Sharma, Rinku Singh, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Ravi Bishnoi, Arshdeep Singh, Mukesh Kumar
Afghanistan - Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Ibrahim Zadran (C), Rahmat Shah, Azmatullah Omarzai, Mohammad Nabi, Karim Jannat, Najibullah Zadran, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Naveen Ul Haq, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Gulbadin Naib
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India vs Afghanistan, 1st T20I, Weather Report
There is little to no chance of rain. However, dew is another aspect that both teams will have an eye on, and on the eve of the match, there was not much of it. Dew is an unpredictable element, however, and things may change on match day. The chilly conditions could present a challenge to both sides when fielding, in particular.
