Before facing Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) pacer Prince Yadav shared his dream to play ODI World Cup 2027 in South Africa alongside Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. When he came up against Kohli, he dismissed him for a duck with a beautiful delivery, sneaking through the gap between bat and pad. While LSG have had a season to forget, their head coach Justin Langer had instilled faith in Prince and Mohsin Khan, backing them for India debut soon. Prince, who is in one of the contenders for purple cap, may get his maiden ODI call-up for the home series against Afghanistan.
As per a report by PTI, Jasprit Bumrah may be rested for Afghanistan ODI series to manage his workload as the selectors want him fit for the gruelling season ahead, featuring nine Tests. An official update on Harshit Rana’s recovery is still awaited after he was ruled out of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 and the Indian Premier League (IPL) due to an injury. It has led to the selectors looking at emerging pacers who have impressed in the IPL. Prince wasn’t named in the India A squad for tri-series in Sri Lanka as he seems to be a serious contender for a spot in ODI squad for Afghanistan series next month.
LSG are already out of the playoffs race. They have two more games left in the season, one against Rajasthan Royals (RR) on May 19 and then Punjab Kings (PBKS) on May 23. Prince may get named in the ODI squad and join the camp.
The 24-year-old Delhi pacer has excelled under the tutelage of former India fast-bowling coach Bharat Arun and former Australia pacer, LSG’s director of cricket Tom Moody.
Currently, he is fifth in the purple cap race. From 12 games, he has 16 wickets at an average of 24. His economy rate is 8.53 runs per over. Notably, he has been a regular in the side, ahead of pace-bowling sensation Mayank Yadav.
The 24-year-old doesn't have too much experience in List A cricket. The Delhi pacer has played only 14 50-over games and claimed 29 wickets at an average of 20.31, including a four-wicket haul.
What did Virat Kohli say about Prince Yadav?
"So people don't know, I went and played Vijay Hazare, I didn't know Prince at all. Because on the field he feels like he's very intense, and he's such a sweet guy, and he's so funny, because Ishant was there as well, and Ishant knows him, so I got very close to him, and he opened up really nicely to me," Kohli said on RCB Podcast.
"So I was telling him even on those times, you know, even through those Vijay Hazare games, standing at mid-off, covers, whatever, what to do, where to bowl," he added.
When will India vs Afghanistan ODI series start?
The three-ODI series against Afghanistan will begin on June 14. The first ODI will be played in Dharamsala. Then, on June 17, the two teams will play in Lucknow, Prince's IPL homeground. The third and final ODI of the series will be played on June 20 in Chennai.