The Ajit Agarkar-led BCCI selection committee officially announced India’s squads for the upcoming series against Afghanistan on Tuesday, May 19. The selection meeting took place in Guwahati. India will play a one-off Test and a three-match ODI series against Afghanistan, starting June 6.
Gill Leads Both Formats
Shubman Gill will captain India in both the Test and the ODI series. For the Test, KL Rahul officially replaces Rishabh Pant as vice-captain. In the ODIs, Shreyas Iyer will serve as Gill’s deputy. So while Pant keeps his place in the Test squad as wicketkeeper-batter, the selectors dropped him from the ODI squad.
Rohit and Hardik Must Prove Fitness
Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli are both part of the ODI squad. However, Rohit and Hardik Pandya must first clear BCCI fitness rules before they can play. Rohit, in particular, faces serious fitness doubts.
The 39-year-old missed five consecutive IPL matches for Mumbai Indians due to a right hamstring problem and returned only as an Impact Substitute. The key concern is whether he can sustain long innings and field actively for 50 overs.
Selectors Rest Bumrah and Jadeja
The selectors rested Jasprit Bumrah from both formats to manage his workload. Additionally, Ravindra Jadeja misses the Test, while Axar Patel and Akash Deep also find no place in the squad. Mohammed Shami, too, is not part of BCCI’s current plans.
Three Young Guns Get First India Call-Ups
The BCCI handed maiden call-ups to Gurnoor Brar and Prince Yadav. Brar earns a place in both the Test and ODI squads. Prince Yadav, who impressed with his pace for Lucknow Super Giants in IPL 2026, gets into the ODI squad only. Harsh Dubey also earns his first India call-up. Furthermore, Ishan Kishan returns to India’s ODI setup after a long time away.
After the announcement, Agarkar said that the selectors are closely watching emerging players as India starts building a core for the 2027 World Cup.
Full Squads
ODI Squad: Shubman Gill (C), Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer (VC), KL Rahul (WK), Ishan Kishan (WK), Hardik Pandya, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Arshdeep Singh, Prasidh Krishna, Prince Yadav, Gurnoor Brar, Harsh Dubey.
Test Squad: Shubman Gill (C), Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Sai Sudharsan, Rishabh Pant, Dhruv Jurel, Devdutt Padikkal, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Md. Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Manav Suthar, Gurnoor Brar, Harsh Dubey.
Series Schedule
The one-off Test starts June 6 in New Chandigarh. Next, the ODI series begins on June 14 at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium in Dharamsala.
After that, both teams travel to Lucknow for the second ODI on June 17. Finally, the third and final ODI takes place on June 20 at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. All three matches start at 1:30 PM IST.
