Rohit Sharma to captain, Virat Kohli included as India announce squad for Afghanistan T20Is

Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli returned to Team India's T20I fold for the upcoming T20I series against Afghanistan at home. The three-match series will be played between January 11 and 17 and is the last T20I rubber for India before the 2024 T20 World Cup in the West Indies and the USA in June.

It could be seen as a sign that the selectors see the two senior pros in their plans for the World Cup even though they haven't played any T20I cricket since the last T20 World Cup in 2022. While Kohli has had a few decent seasons in the IPL, Rohit, a five-time champion, has struggled for any notable scores with the bat.

The former Mumbai Indians captain will also lead the team. Due to injuries, India are missing their usual captain for the format Hardik Pandya, and his unofficial deputy Suryakumar Yadav.

Hardik picked up a foot injury during the 2023 World Cup while Suryakumar, the world's best-ranked T20I batter, hurt his ankle while fielding in the third T20I against South Africa last month. Both are expected to be back for IPL 2024.

To manage that, the selectors stuck with youngsters Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rinku Singh, and Jitesh Sharma. They also allowed the return of Rajasthan Royals captain Sanju Samson, who was dropped after the T20I series against Ireland. Shivam Dube also maintained his place in the squad.

Ruturaj Gaikwad, who was at the fringes of the team but played a couple of good knocks last year, is also unavailable due to a finger injury.

The bowling attack was mostly led by youngsters, with Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj absent. The team had four spinners, including Washington Sundar.

India's full squad for Afghanistan T20Is

Rohit Sharma (C), S Gill, Y Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Tilak Varma, Rinku Singh, Jitesh Sharma (wk), Sanju Samson (wk), Shivam Dube, W Sundar, Axar Patel, Ravi Bishnoi, Kuldeep Yadav, Arshdeep Singh, Avesh Khan and Mukesh Kumar.