India vs. Afghanistan will be hosting their inaugural T20I International match.
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India and Afghanistan are going to make history by jointly hosting their first-ever Twenty20 International (T20I) cricket match. The Indian cricket team, led by Captain Rohit Sharma, will face off against Afghanistan led by Ibrahim Zadran, in the first T20 international match of the three-match series. The match will take place at the Punjab Cricket Association IS Bindra Stadium in Mohali on 11th January.
Although Kohli and Rohit are making their comeback in the format just months before the 2024 T20 World Cup, they will play different matches in the Afghanistan series. Kohli will play in the second and third T20Is, while Rohit is playing today as the skipper of the squad. The Afghanistan series is India's final rehearsal for the T20I World Cup hosted by two-time winners West Indies and the United States. Both Kohli and Rohit's return have caused India to make a significant change in its opening lineup. Before the series opener, Head Coach Dravid confirmed that Yashasvi Jaiswal and Rohit are India's first-choice openers in the 1st T20I.
Rohit Sharma's comeback in T20Is is due to his Powerplay approach in ODIs. The intensity with which he batted in one-day cricket and the aggression he showed helped him lead from the front and pave a path for batting in white-ball cricket.
India is expected to win the match, regardless of who wins the toss. According to Times Now, the Rohit Sharma-led side has a 60 percent chance of winning if they bat first. However, if Afghanistan bats first, the winning percentage rises to 70.
Dravid emphasized the importance of player performance in the Indian Premier League (IPL) in the selection process for the T20 World Cup in 2024. This is the last T20I assignment before the tournament, so the players' performance in the IPL will be crucial.
Dravid has clarified the absence of Ishan Kishan and Shreyas Iyer from the T20I series against Afghanistan. Kishan had requested a break during the South Africa tour due to mental tiredness, and the team management supported his decision. However, Kishan has not made himself available for selection since then and will return to domestic cricket when he is ready.
India: Rohit Sharma (C), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, SV Samson
(wk), Tilak Varma, S Dubey, RK Singh, Axar Patel, KL Yadav, Arshdeep Singh,
Mukesh Kumar.
As the cricketing world focuses on the upcoming T20I match between India and Afghanistan, the players carry the responsibility of meeting the expectations of millions of fans. This match provides an opportunity for the players to showcase their individual brilliance and team strategy..
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