Mohali (Punjab): The focus will firmly be on the Indian skipper Rohit Sharma when India takes on Afghanistan in the first game of the T20 series here on Thursday.
With only three T20Is left before the all-important ICC T20 World Cup to be played in the Caribbean and United States, the selection committee will have a close look at the performances of Rohit who has made a comeback to the national T20 side after a 14-month odd break.
Virat Kohli will be missing the first match due to personal reasons. The Rohit-Kohli duo would be pleased that the opposition is Afghanistan and they won't be facing star spinner Rashid Khan, who is unlikely to play despite being named in the squad.
Rohit and Virat are proven performers and have led India to victories on numerous occasions. If the duo fires on all cylinders, then no formidable bowling attack can stop them and Afghanistan's rather inexperienced one will be no exception.
The duo will also be keen to excel and make it to the ICC World T20 team and give another shot for an ICC Trophy. Rohit was part of the Indian team that won the inaugural T20 World Cup in South Africa way back in 2007 and he would surely like to end his career on a high.
Ditto for Virat, who was part of the 2011 ODI World Cup winning team.
If the two get going, a run feast is imminent at the IS Bindra Cricket Stadium in Mohali. The likes of Shubman Gill, and Yashasvi Jaiswal will have to play their roles to perfection too and if the two or either of the two - Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma are in their usual self, they will have to play second fiddle.
In all likelihood, the team is likely to go with Jitesh Sharma as the first-choice wicketkeeper as he has been preferred over Ishan Kishan. The finisher's job will have to be performed by either Rinku Singh or Shivam Dubey, both known for their prowess in hitting towering sixes.
A rather inexperienced pace attack led by Arshdeep Singh will have to bowl in the right areas to contain the likes of Ibrahim Zadran and Company. Arshdeep will be playing in front of his home crowd.
The eight overs bowled by the Indian spinners will also be crucial in the context of the game. While India are outright favorites to lift the Trophy and record a whitewash, Afghanistan can spring a surprise by winning one odd game.
Considering dew would be a factor as the weather would be cool, the captain who wins the toss would probably choose to bat first and prefer chasing.
The other two games will be played at Indore and Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru.
Squads:
India: Rohit Sharma (Captain), 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
Afghanistan: Ibrahim Zadran (Captain), Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wicketkeeper), Ikram Alikhil (wicketkeeper), Hazratullah Zazai, Rahmat Shah, Najibullah Zadran, Mohammad Nabi, Karim Janat, Azmaullah Omarzai, Sharafuddin Ashraf, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Fazal Haq Farooqi, Fareed Ahmad, Naveen Ul Haq, Noor Ahmad, Mohammad Saleem, Qais Ahmad, Gulbadin Naib and Rashid Khan.
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