Ravindra Jadeja’s omission from both India squads for the upcoming Afghanistan Tour of India 2026 has emerged as one of the biggest talking points following the latest selection meeting in Guwahati. The Ajit Agarkar-led selection committee announced India’s squads for the one-off Test and three ODIs on Tuesday, but the veteran all-rounder did not find a place in either side.
Jadeja, who has represented India in 89 Tests and 210 ODIs, was part of India’s previous Test XI against South Africa in November 2025 and also featured in the ODI series against New Zealand earlier this year. His absence raised several questions, especially with fellow left-arm spin all-rounder Axar Patel also missing from the squads.
Ajit Agarkar explains Ravindra Jadeja’s Test snub
India chief selector Ajit Agarkar clarified that Jadeja remains an important part of India’s plans and has only been rested from the one-off Test against Afghanistan rather than dropped.
"He is still an integral part of the team." Agarkar said during the virtual press conference following the squad announcement.
The chairman of selectors further added, "With regards to Test, he still remains No. 1 spinner."
The Afghanistan Test, scheduled to begin on June 6 in Mullanpur, is not part of the ongoing World Test Championship (WTC) cycle, which has allowed the selectors to manage the workload of senior players. Ravindra Jadeja has also been actively involved in Indian Premier League 2026 for Rajasthan Royals, making workload management a major factor behind his absence.
Why Jadeja was left out of India’s ODI squad
While Jadeja’s Test exclusion was linked to workload management, the selectors had a different reason behind leaving him out of the ODI squad.
Agarkar revealed that the team management wants to explore different combinations ahead of the 2027 ODI World Cup, which will be played in South African conditions.
"With regards to ODIs, with 15-16 months left, we want to try and assess what our options are keeping in mind conditions in South Africa are. We know what Jadeja and Axar can do." Agarkar explained.
The selectors are expected to use the Afghanistan ODI series as an opportunity to test younger all-round options while keeping experienced players like Ravindra Jadeja fresh for bigger assignments in the future.
Here are India's Test and ODI squads for the Afghanistan series:
Test squad:
Shubman Gill (C), Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul (VC), Sai Sudharsan, Rishabh Pant, Devdutt Padikkal, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Manav Suthar, Gurnoor Brar, Harsh Dubey, Dhruv Jurel
ODI squad:
Shubman Gill (C), Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer (VC), KL Rahul, Ishan Kishan, Hardik Pandya, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar, Arshdeep Singh, Prince Yadav, Prasidh Krishna, Gurnoor Brar and Harsh Dubey.