India and Afghanistan are preparing to meet in the opening match of the three-game T20I series on Sunday at Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi. Earlier, there had been uncertainty over the opening match because Delhi is also hosting the BRICS Summit; however, concerns were put to rest, with the Delhi and District Cricket Association confirming that the first T20I will take place as scheduled. India head into the series with a strong squad, boasting the likes of Abhishek Sharma, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Ishan Kishan Tilak Varma, Shivam Dube and Jasprit Bumrah.

The men in blue will be led by Shreyas Iyer, under whose leadership the side has experienced a mixed bag of results. Shreyas Iyer encountered a rocky start to his journey as India’ T20I captain, with India enduring series losses against Ireland and England. However, he turned things around, guiding the team to a series win over Zimbabwe, which was also his first series win as captain.

However, one of the major concerns for India ahead of the opener will be managing batting combinations, with highly skilled players looking to make their impact. Moreover, India have been boosted by the return of pacer Jasprit Bumrah, who had been on the sidelines for a long time due to injury. Afghanistan, on the other hand, will look to challenge India, having grown into a more dangerous unit in recent times. Ibrahim Zadran is set to lead Afghanistan after taking charge as the team’s full-time T20I captain for the first time.

Afghanistan have experienced campaigners in Rashid Khan, Mohammad Nabi, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Azmatullah Omarzai, Gulbadin Naib, Noor Ahmad and Mujeeb Ur Rahman. Meanwhile, Afghanistan's biggest advantage comes from their bowling attack, as they have traditionally relied heavily on their spinners, and they would look to do the same this time as well, with conditions in Delhi expected to favour spinners. Both teams last faced each other in a T20I series back in January 2024, with India sweeping the series 3-0. 

Head-to-head

Matches - 9

IND won - 7

AFG won - 0

No Result - 1

Tied - 1

India likely XI: Abhishek Sharma, Vaibhav Suryavanshi, Ishan Kishan (wk), S Iyer (c), Tilak Varma, Shivam Dubey, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Axar Patel, Varun Chakravarthy, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh

Afghanistan likely XI: Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Sediqullah Atal, Ibrahim Zadran (c), Darwish Rasooli, Azmatullah Omarzai, Gulbadin Naib, Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Naveen-ul-Haq, Fazalhaq Farooqi