India skipper Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli are set to make a comeback to the T20I squad after 14 months. Rohit and Kohli have been away from T20 action since India’s exit from the T20 World Cup 2022 semifinal after the loss to Jos Buttler’s England.
Rohit will lead India in the T20I series as well. After the T20 World Cup 2022, Rohit’s focus shifted to the World Test Championship (WTC) followed by the ODI World Cup. In his absence, Hardik Pandya assumed the captaincy in the shortest format. Recently, when Pandya got injured, Suryakumar Yadav led India in the T20I series against Australia and South Africa.
Meanwhile, there is a question mark over Pandya’s fitness as well. The all-rounder got injured during World Cup 2023. Also, Suryakumar will miss the T20I series as he got injured while fielding in the final T20I against South Africa where he scored his fourth century in the format.
The three-T20I series against Afghanistan will begin on January 11 in Mohali. The second T20I will be played in Indore on January 14 followed by the final T20I in Bengaluru on January 17.
The T20I series will work as a preparatory series ahead of the T20 World Cup 2024. India will play a five-Test series against England starting January 25 which will be followed by the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024.
In the T20 World Cup 2024 which will be played in the United States and West Indies, India are placed in Group A alongside Pakistan, Ireland, Canada, and the USA. India will take on Ireland in their first group-stage match of Ireland in New York on June 5. On June 9, the much-awaited India versus Pakistan will be played in New York as well. The next two matches will be played on June 12 and 15 against co-hosts USA and Canada.
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