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India captain Rohit Sharma on Sunday added another gem to his shining crown as he became the first men's player to play 150 T20Is. Rohit achieved this feat during the second T20I match against Afghanistan at the Holkar Cricket Stadium. Rohit returned to India's T20I setup for the first time since the end of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2022. He led his side to a 6-wicket victory over Afghanistan in the first T20I in Mohali.
Former India batter Suresh Raina believes that the first-choice wicketkeeper-batter for Rohit Sharma would be Rishabh Pant. The 26-year-old southpaw is not a part of India's ongoing three-match T20I series against Afghanistan but he is gearing up for a comeback to competitive cricket. Pant, who has started training after recovering from a car accident he met with in December 2022, is expected to play in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024. With the Afghanistan series being India's last T20I assignment before the T20 World Cup, the performance of players in IPL is definitely going to have a say in the selection of the squad for the world event.
Former India star Suresh Raina backed Sanju Samson as his leading choice for the wicketkeeper-batter role and called the Kerala player the X-Factor. It is worth noting that Samson and Jitesh Sharma have been included as wicketkeeper-batters in India's squad for three-match T20I series against Afghanistan. Ishan Kishan is not a part of the series as he has asked for rest. Meanwhile, the team management has given no clarity on the absence of KL Rahul, who has cemented his place as wicketkeeper-batter in ODI cricket.
All-rounder Shivam Dube defied bitterly cold weather to hit an unbeaten half-century and take one wicket as India eased to a comfortable win over Afghanistan in the first Twenty20 international on Thursday. Dube, a left-handed batsman, made 60 off 40 balls for his second T20 fifty as India chased down their victory target of 159 with 15 balls and six wickets to spare at Mohali. India lead the three-match series 1-0 as they prepare for the T20 World Cup in June. India's bowlers led by spinner Axar Patel restricted Afghanistan to 158-5 despite an attacking 42 by Mohammad Nabi on a chilly winter evening.
Team India will be squaring off against Afghanistan in the first T20I of the three-match series on Thursday in Mohali. Skipper Rohit Sharma, who will be playing first T20I match since World Cup 2022, will be leading the side. However, star batter Virat Kohli, who was also returning to the shortest format along with Rohit, pulled out of the first game, due to personal reasons. Apart from this duo, this series will also mark a comeback of wicketkeeper-batter Sanju Samson in T20I cricket.
Former Indian cricket team wicket-keeper batter Deep Dasgupta said that he was a 'little surprised' at Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma's return for the upcoming T20I series against Afghanistan. Rohit and Virat last played a T20I for India back in November 2022 when they faced England in the T20 World Cup 2022 semi-finals. Since then, they have prioritised the longer formats but their return for the Afghanistan series has provided a sneak peek into the team management's possible plans for the T20 World Cup 2024.
Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli made a return to T20I cricket as the Indian cricket team squad for the three-match series against Afghanistan was announced but a clear omission was Shreyas Iyer. Iyer had a good run of form in the Cricket World Cup 2023 and even took part in the ODI and Test series against South Africa. As a result, his exclusion from the squad against Afghanistan came as a surprise for some fans as well as experts. According to a report on Anandabazar Patrika, the selectors were not happy with his style of batting in the recently concluded Test series. The report further claimed that Shreyas' decision to take a holiday and not play Ranji Trophy matches for Mumbai was not taken well by the team management.
Indian cricket team wicket-keeper batter Sanju Samson won hearts with a brilliant gesture during the Ranji Trophy match between Kerala and Uttar Pradesh. After the day's play, Samson went to meet the attending fans and posed for pictures with them. In a video shared by Rajasthan Royals on X (formerly called Twitter), Sanju was seen giving a RR cap to a specially-abled fan and then he posed for pictures with him and other spectators. The video earned him a lot of praise and has already gone viral on social media.