Cricket / BCCI Names India Squad for Afghanistan T20Is; Bumrah, Samson Return

Mumbai, Sep 1: The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Tuesday announced the Indian squad for the upcoming three-match T20I series against Afghanistan, scheduled at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi from September 13 to 17.

Fast bowlers Jasprit Bumrah and Harshit Rana and all-rounders Washington Sundar and Nitish Kumar Reddy have been picked, but the participation of all four players is subject to fitness clearance, the BCCI said.

India’s squad for Afghanistan T20I series announced. #TeamIndia will play three T20Is against Afghanistan at New Delhi, beginning September 13.#AFGvIND pic.twitter.com/UqTUeZyHz8

— BCCI (@BCCI) September 1, 2026

Shreyas Iyer will keep leading the Men in Blue, while Tilak Varma remains his deputy. The squad features regulars Abhishek Sharma, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Shivam Dube, Arshdeep Singh and Varun Chakravarthy, while there have been some changes to the team that played in Zimbabwe in July.

Sanju Samson returned to the side after not being picked for the Zimbabwe T20Is, while the bowling department has seen changes with regular speedsters returning. Arshdeep is joined by Bumrah and Harshit, as the likes of Prince Yadav, Yash Thakur, Ashok Sharma, and Mayank Yadav, all of whom were on the touring party for Zimbabwe, miss out. Contrary to reports, there is no place for Hardik Pandya.

The biggest development is the return of Bumrah, who had suffered an impact injury during the England ODIs in July and has been out of action since then. He also missed the recent Test series against Sri Lanka, which India won 1-0. Sundar was another key three-format player who was out of Sri Lanka's Tests due to a hamstring injury he sustained in the ODIs against the Three Lions.

Harshit Rana is also back in the squad after being ruled out of the England ODIs due to a hamstring strain sustained in the preceding T20Is. This came shortly after he made a return to the international fold following his recovery from a knee injury that made him miss the T20 World Cup 2026.

The spin department is bolstered by Axar Patel, Varun Chakaravarthy, and Ravi Bishnoi, offering variety and depth. Left-arm quick Arshdeep Singh adds further pace options.

The absence of Hardik Pandya, who continues to recover from injury, is a notable miss. His exclusion places greater responsibility on India’s younger all-rounders to step up.
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India enters the series after a 3–0 win over Zimbabwe, aiming to consolidate its T20 form ahead of next year’s ICC events. Afghanistan, meanwhile, will look to regroup after a disappointing 2026 T20 World Cup campaign.

India’s squad: Shreyas Iyer (C), Abhishek Sharma, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Sanju Samson (wk), Ishan Kishan (wk), Tilak Varma [VC], Shivam Dube, Nitish Kumar Reddy*, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar*, Varun Chakaravarthy, Ravi Bishnoi, Jasprit Bumrah*, Arshdeep Singh, Harshit Rana*

NOTE: * Subject to fitness clearance