Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli have been named in India's squad for the three-match T20I series against Afghanistan.
The pair is returning to T20I cricket after fourteen months.
Sharma and Kohli's last T20I match was the ten-wicket semi-final defeat to England in the 2022 ICC T20 World Cup.
This will be India's last T20I series before this year's T20 World Cup.
Hardik Pandya, Suryakumar Yadav and Ruturaj Gaikwad were unavailable for selection owing to injuries.
The experienced pair of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli will be seen in T20I cricket after a long absence of fourteen months, as they have been named in India’s squad for the upcoming T20I series against Afghanistan.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) named a 16-member squad for the series, which will also be the last occasion of the Indian team competing in this format ahead of the 2024 ICC T20 World Cup.
Rohit Sharma has been named the captain of the team, with Virat Kohli also finding his place in the squad. Notably, their last T20I appearance was back on 10 November 2022, in India’s 10-wicket defeat to England at the T20 World Cup semi-final.
Since that defeat, Hardik Pandya and Suryakumar Yadav have led India in the shortest format of the team, with the team management opting to prefer youth ahead of the veterans. However, they both are currently nursing injuries, and were hence unavailable for selection.
Barring Pandya and Yadav, Ruturaj Gaikwad – who led India to a gold medal at the 2023 Asian Games – is also recuperating from an injury. Wicketkeeper-batter Ishan Kishan, meanwhile, has not been selected, with Sanju Samson returning to the fore.
Samson’s last T20I appearance for India was back in August 2023, in a series against Ireland, although he recently scored an ODI century against South Africa in Paarl.
No Bumrah & Siraj
In the bowling department, Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj are notable omissions, albeit they are believed to have been rested. In their absence, the trio of Mukesh Kumar, Avesh Khan and Arshdeep Singh will comprise the pace battery, which has not had a vacancy for Prasidh Krishna.
India’s three-match series will commence in Mohali’s PCA IS Bindra Stadium on 11 January, before the entourage moves to Indore’s Holkar Cricket Stadium for the second match. The final game will be played in Bengaluru’s M Chinnaswamy Stadium on 17 January.
India Squad for Afghanistan Series: 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.
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